The Risks in Background Checks
AGG Talks: Background Screening - Ban the Box and Fair Chance Hiring Laws: The Year in Review
#WorkforceWednesday: COVID-19 Restrictions Tighten, NYC Fair Chance Act, Biden's Budget - Employment Law This Week®
Employment Law Now III-50 - A 50th Birthday Celebration Episode
What is this about? On February 27, 2024, the County of Los Angeles Board of Supervisors voted to adopt the County’s Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers (FCO). The FCO aligns with the California Fair Chance Act (FCA),...more
In December 2023, the California Civil Rights Department (“CRD”) filed the first-of-its-kind lawsuit under the California Fair Chance Act (“Act”) against Ralphs Grocery Store (“Ralphs”) in the Los Angeles County Superior...more
In California regulatory news, the Civil Rights Council, an arm of the Civil Rights Department, approved changes to how employers legally conduct criminal background checks, and Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law a bill...more
The California Civil Rights Council recently amended the regulations interpreting California’s 2018 Fair Chance Act, which go into effect October 1, 2023. The new regulations add restrictions, make clarifications, and...more
Existing California law regulates inquiries into and the use of criminal history information in hiring and personnel decisions. Existing California law also substantially impedes the ability of employers (and background...more
California employers, beware: The Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) announced a new initiative to crack down on violations of the Fair Chance Act. ...more
On Oct. 20, 2021, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) announced a new effort to identify and correct violations of the Fair Chance Act, which seeks to reduce barriers to employment for individuals...more
The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH) announced a new affirmative effort to detect and correct violations of the Fair Chance Act (FCA)—California’s ban-the-box law—by using online technology to...more
The Fair Chance Act, commonly referred to as California’s “ban the box” law, imposes restrictions on employers with five or more employees from asking a job applicant any questions that seek the disclosure of their conviction...more
In July 2021, Maine enacted a new “ban-the-box” law that limits employer inquiries into an applicant’s criminal history. Under the new law, entitled “An Act Relating to Fair Chance in Employment,” employers are prohibited...more
As we previously advised, the City of New York amended its Fair Chance Act (“FCA”)—also known as the “ban the box” law—which limits the types of inquiries employers can make regarding criminal history during the hiring...more
Following Mayor Bill de Blasio’s non-action on the bill passed by the New York City Council in December expanding the scope of New York City’s Fair Chance Act (FCA), the amendments have become law. The amendments, which go...more
Since its implementation on January 1, 2018, The Fair Chance Act has been a source of questions for California employers. Also referred to as “banning the box,” Government Code section 12952 makes it illegal for most...more
The California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), as amended in 2018, restricts a covered employer’s ability to make hiring decisions based on an individual’s criminal history, including but not limited to court records...more
With the start of a new year—and a new decade—employers in San Francisco, California, Waterloo, Iowa, and Grand Rapids, Michigan, must follow new “ban-the-box” laws restricting their use of criminal records in hiring and...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance (the “FCO”), which was amended as of October 1, 2018, has long required that covered employers provide employees with the Office of Labor Standards Enforcement’s...more
Employers that use criminal record screening policies must continue to be vigilant about compliance with all applicable laws. Following a multi-million dollar settlement by a leading retailer earlier this year, a recent...more
Beginning on June 7, 2018, four new Washington laws will go into effect and place new restrictions on employers in the state....more
Washington is the latest state to pass a so-called “Ban the box” law that limits employers’ ability to use criminal background checks to screen applicants and employees....more
Washington State has joined a number of other jurisdictions, including the Washington cities of Seattle and Spokane, by passing a “ban-the-box” law, known as the Washington Fair Chance Act (HB 1298). ...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: California is rife with regulation of how employers may obtain and consider background check information for use in hiring and personnel decisions. ...more
Washington has joined a growing list of states and cities to restrict criminal history inquiries in the hiring process with adoption of the Washington Fair Chance Act (2SHB 1298), signed into law on March 13, 2018. Beginning...more
2017 is shaping up to be a year of continued growth for ban-the-box laws nationwide. It’s time for employers to get creative and develop strategies for hiring outside “the box. ”Ban-the-box laws are aimed at delaying the...more