On March 13, 2014, New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman announced agreements with four of the nation’s largest background check agencies whereby they will not, on behalf of their clients, issue automatic rejection letters to job applicants with criminal convictions. Under the agreements, HireRight, Inc., First Advantage, General Information Services Inc., and Sterling Infosystems agreed to defer hiring decisions to New York State employers to individually consider candidates pursuant to New York law. The agreements were purported to address the practice of employers utilizing these background check agencies to issue automatic rejection letters for applicants with prior felony convictions; however, New York Correction Law sections 752 and 753 generally require that applicants with criminal convictions be considered on a case-by-case basis using a multiple-factor test. For New York State employers, these agreements serve as a timely reminder to ensure compliance with New York law whenever an employment decision is based upon a prior felony conviction.
Recommended Reading
The Ogletree OFCCP Bulletin: July 2020
Here are the latest developments from the U.S. Department of Labor’s (DOL) Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP).
When is a Background Search not a Background Search?
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) was enacted to insure that consumer reporting agencies act with “fairness, impartiality, and respect for the consumer’s right to privacy.” But one federal court held recently that LinkedIn’s search technology does not make that site a “consumer reporting agency” for purposes of FCRA.
EEOC Issues Long-Awaited Final Rule on Bias Complaints Against Federal Agencies
In a recent Law360 article, the publication of the final rule revising the federal sector Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) complaint process was announced. The revised rule, published in the Federal Register on July 25, 2012, updates how the EEOC processes complaints of discrimination by federal sector agency employees and…..