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California is only one of 34 states that have ban-the-box laws. While this article deals with California-specific interactions between ban-the-box laws and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), it provides a useful lesson for any employer who deals with similar issues.
Ban the box laws and Second Chance programs that help ex-offenders in the United States are spreading fast across the country. The National Employment Law Project (NELP) estimates that approximately 70 million people in America—or nearly one in three U.S. adults—have some type of criminal record that may hinder employment opportunities.
Most employers perform some type of background screening as a condition of employment after someone has accepted a job offer. Let’s take a look at some of the most common types of background checks employers conduct.
Employers often use job applications to seek information about candidates’ conviction records. Criminal background checks are often performed before hiring an employee. The reasons for seeking the information seem obvious, but unfortunately, how the information can be used is not. In fact, sometimes it seems employers are stuck in a “holding cell” when it comes […]
by Mark Flora Texas Attorney General (AG) Greg Abbott has filed suit against the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), seeking a declaratory judgment that Texas and its agencies be entitled to maintain their current policies barring convicted felons, or categories of convicted felons, from state employment. Convicted felons and categories of convicted felons are currently […]
Over the past few years, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has aggressively challenged the use of credit reports and criminal history checks in hiring decisions, alleging that use of the information results in a discriminatory impact on candidates in protected groups. In 2012, the commission successfully negotiated a $3.13 million prelawsuit settlement of a […]
No one wants to get burned by hiring a bad apple, so it’s common for employers to conduct background checks to lessen the chance of bringing a dishonest employee into the workplace. But as hazardous as it is to have shady employees, it also can be dangerous to step out of line when checking people […]