EEOC request for background check information

credit checks and the role they should, or should not, play in pre-employment background screening. Last week, as a follow-up to the hearing, the EEOC posted a request for information on its website that explores issues surrounding liability associated with providing an employment reference. They have posted a request for information on the questions raised, with a deadline of posting your opinions by Friday, December 3. The main issues were regarding background checks and the information obtained through them:
By way of background, it was asserted during the hearing that one of the reasons employers may be more likely to include credit history as part of their background investigations for new hires now than previously, is that employers are less likely to obtain useful information by simply checking employment references as many employers provide very little information regarding prior employees. For example, some employers have a policy verifying the individual was employed there and the dates of employment, and nothing else. The EEOC are clearly looking for a way to get better clarification of a potential hires integrity from their previous employers, without putting this prior employer at risk of future liable consequences through the information they provide and without performing credit checks. Late in the hearing Commissioner Feldblum posed a series of questions for the management bar to consider answering. The EEOC’s notice last week was their attempt to summarize the questions. Below is the request for comments followed by an excerpt from the hearing transcript to provide context. Request for Public Comments During the Commission meeting on Employer Use of Credit History as a Screening Tool, held on October 20, 2010, an alternative to credit reports was suggested for employers to use in making hiring decisions. Rather than obtain credit history on an applicant, the suggestion was made for an employer to pose the following three questions to an applicant’s prior employers as a standard reference check: 1) Did the employee perform adequately?
2) Did you have any concerns about the employee’s integrity or reliability?
3) Would you re-hire this employee? The Commission is seeking public comment on whether employers who provide honest answers to these questions would be subjecting themselves to legal liability, and why or why not. All comments will be made available to the Commissioners, the Office of General Counsel, and the Office of Legal Counsel, and will also be available for inspection in the EEOC Library. Comments should be submitted by December 3, 2010, and can be mailed to Commission Meeting, EEOC Executive Officer, 131 M Street, N.E., Washington, D.C.20507, or e-mailed to Commissionmeetingcomments@eeoc.gov.

Mind Your Business, as a leading organization in the pre-employment background screening industry, will be following this matter closely and, without question, is more than happy to assist the EEOC with their opinions on the future of credit checks and their role in background screening. Our belief in the importance of maintaining transparency of these matters to the public is why we are posting this on our blog, and request that those with an opinion on this send their comments to the addresses listed above. If you have any further questions regarding this, don’t hesitate to get in touch with MYB, and we will do all we can to provide you with a more concrete understanding.]]>