Q. We are considering using an investigative agency to verify applicants’ prior employment, education and possible criminal background. Are there any New York laws that are applicable?
Employers that hire outside firms or investigators to conduct employee investigations and background checks must make sure those vendors strictly comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Failing to do so can result in substantial legal risks, including damages, penalties, fines, punitive damages and attorneys’ fees awards.
Today is the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) deadline to comply with the 2003 Fair and Accurate Credit Transactions Act’s (FACTA) Identity Theft requirements. Dubbed the “Red Flag Rules,” Sections 114 and 315 of FACTA require that
all financial institutions and creditors create and implement a written
program for “detection, prevention and mitigation” of identity theft.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act regulates how your company performs a job background check on applicants. Contrary to popular belief, this federal law doesn’t just cover credit checks. It covers any background report, such as driving records and criminal histories obtained from a “consumer reporting agency.”
Many of the millions who post information online never think a potential employer might read what they post. Meanwhile, employers believe that if the information is available online for the viewing, they have an obligation to look. However, several laws may restrict how you conduct the search or how you use the information.
Employers and HR professionals should make it their policy never to hire a candidate without a comprehensive background check. But, they also must comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), which regulates how employers perform employment background checks on job applicants. Contrary to popular belief, this federal law doesn’t cover just credit checks.
Q. Our employment application asks whether the candidate has been convicted of a felony. Is it legal for us to ask this? If so, can we ask what the applicant has been convicted of and can that information be used as a basis for not hiring an individual? ...
Employers that use third parties (referred to in the law as credit reporting agencies, or CRAs) to perform background checks and investigations need to be aware of the requirements of the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ...
Q. I recently read an article about employees who were attacked at work by other employees who never should have been hired in the first place. How can an employer reduce its risk of liability for negligent hiring? ...
Q. I have received a complaint from one of my employees alleging sexual harassment by a supervisor in my HR department. I want to bring in an independent investigator, but I’m concerned I’ll have to notify the subject of the investigation. I’ve heard that the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires me to notify employees before investigating these types of complaints through a third party. Obviously, this would make things uncomfortable for the employee who filed the complaint. Does the FCRA’s notice requirement apply to a sexual harassment investigation? ...
Q. We are getting ready to conduct an internal investigation into a series of thefts that have occurred within one of our offices. We would like to obtain background checks from some of the suspected employees, but are concerned that they may refuse to execute the necessary consent forms. Can we require them to do so? — A.K. ...
The Internet lets employers can find out much more about prospective employees than they could just a few years ago. One sort of web site of interest to employers doing background checks: the government’s sex offender registries. Follow these guidelines to use that information responsibly—and legally.
No matter the size of your operation, hiring and retaining qualified and honest employees is critical. A recent study found that 36.5% of employment verifications revealed inconsistencies and 14% provided false or inconsistent information about education. That means every employer has a good reason to undertake background checks of all potential employees before making hiring decisions, particularly for positions involving confidential or sensitive information ...
More and more employers are conducting criminal background checks on prospective and current employees, and that means employers are asking tough questions about prior arrests and convictions in the application process. To avoid potential liability, your company needs to develop practices and procedures for managing the process. You need to understand applicable state and federal laws concerning background checks ...
Q. Our company uses the sheriff’s office to run criminal background checks on all finalists for employment. Our application form notifies the applicants that their criminal histories might be reviewed, but we do not provide any further notice to them. Our new personnel director is adamant that this practice is in violation of the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Is she correct?
Q. We do background checks on all applicants. I know the Fair Credit Reporting Act says we have to get the applicant’s permission. We hire some employees under age 18. Is there anything special we need to do? —A.G.
When negotiating contracts with employee outsourcing firms, many organizations make background checks an afterthought and leave the specifics up to the agency. That's a big mistake ...
Q. Our company routinely runs background checks on all people to whom we offer positions. Can we legally disclose an employee’s background information to a customer who requests it? (The employee is working on the customer’s job site.) —L.B., North Carolina
Q. I'd like to contact an applicant's former employer, but that employer wasn't included in the applicant's reference list. Can I call the employer anyway? —A.T., Wyoming
If your organization uses credit checks in the hiring process, you’d better have a sound business reason for doing so or you could face a new type of litigation ...
HR Law 101: Most organizations ask candidates to fill out a job application. Make sure that yours meets federal, state and local requirements. Don’t ask for information that could be considered discriminatory ...
Issue: Must you seek permission each time you want to review an employees' credit record? Benefit: As a new court ruling shows, the answer is 'no;' you can obtain one ...
Your organization can be held liable for "negligent hiring" if an employee commits a crime and you could have (or should have) prevented it. That's why it's crucial to run background ...
THE LAW. Employees who commit violent acts in the workplace obviously violate state criminal laws. But the liability trail doesn't stop there. Employers have a legal obligation to maintain a ...
Before you seek consumer credit or background reports on applicants, you must obtain their written consent and give them a clearly written disclosure form. But what about when you investigate ...
If your receipts still display customers' full credit card numbers, alert your top brass to a new law change: The renewed Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires business receipts to ...
Good news: Your organization no longer has to notify employees suspected of workplace misconduct that they are targets of third-party investigations. That's because Congress recently reauthorized the Fair Credit Reporting Act ...
Good news: You no longer have to notify employees suspected of workplace misconduct that they are targets of third-party investigations. Congress recently altered the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) ...
It's true that your company could be held liable if it rejects an applicant based on inaccurate data in his background check. But don't stop doing background ...
Issue: You can be held liable for rejecting job applicants because of inaccurate background checks. Risk: Defamation, invasion of privacy and wrongful-discharge lawsuits ...
THE LAW. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) regulates how your company performs background checks on job applicants. Contrary to popular belief, this federal law ...
The frantic competition for workers has caused many companies to become lax about screening job candidates. That's not smart. Liars, thieves and violent criminals ...
