Employment Screening

Effort to help ex-felons secure employment revived in Oklahoma Legislature

by Barbara Hoberock - Tulsa World

OKLAHOMA CITY — Lawmakers are expected to revise an effort next session to make it easier for felons who have served their time to get jobs.

Last session, Sen. Jack Stewart, R-Yukon, filed Senate Bill 1077, called the Ban the Box legislation. It would bar employers from asking on a job application or during the hiring process whether a candidate has felony conviction.

But the bill would allow employers to request a background report if a conditional employment offer has been made.

Read more: https://tulsaworld.com/news/state-regional/government-politics/effort-to-help-ex-felons-secure-employment-revived-in-oklahoma-legislature/article_f2f4f0d0-6eca-11ee-9e94-63d26b228cd6.html

Understanding the Shift: California’s Ban on Employer Cannabis Inquiries and Testing

by Anthony Zaller - Zaller Law Group, PC

Governor Newsom signed a new law this week restricting employers from asking about marijuana use and conducting certain drug tests for applicants and employees.  This Friday’s Five covers what the new law means for employers in the context of existing law governing employer’s ability to ask, test, and regulate employee’s use of marijuana in the workplace:

Read more: https://www.californiaemploymentlawreport.com/2023/10/understanding-the-shift-californias-ban-on-employer-cannabis-inquiries-and-testing/

Employment Issues in Generative AI

by Evandro C Gigante, Joseph C O’Keefe - The National Law Review

The second webinar in our series, “Employment Issues in Generative AI,” explored the evolving impact of generative AI (or “GAI”) on the workplace and how employers can work to ensure the ethical and responsible use of AI applications and recognize and navigate potential legal issues from existing anti-discrimination and other laws and regulations.  The presenters also offered a list of do’s and don’ts and outlined how employers should develop an AI strategy and policy and how to avoid common pitfalls in AI implementation.

Read more: https://www.natlawreview.com/article/employment-issues-generative-ai

Proposed Legislation Limiting Inquiries into an Applicant’s Criminal History Prior to an Offer of Employment Introduced in the New York State Legislature

by Evandro C Gigante, Laura M. Fant, Margo R. Richard - The National Law Review

On February 7, 2023, Bill No. A03726 was introduced before the New York State Assembly which, if passed, would prohibit employers from inquiring about or making statements regarding “the arrest record or conviction record of any person who is in the process of applying for employment or interviewing for employment with such employer.”

Read more: https://www.natlawreview.com/article/proposed-legislation-limiting-inquiries-applicant-s-criminal-history-prior-to-offer

'Shocking breach of faith' | Spectrum owes $7 billion in punitive damages for murder of Texas customer

by Jay Wallis - WFAA

DALLAS — A Dallas County jury found Charter Communications, which also operates as Spectrum, acted negligently in hiring a field technician who killed one of its customers. The company now owes billions of dollars in damages.

The jury awarded $7 billion in punitive damages against Charter for "systemic safety failures" in connection to the 2019 murder of 83-year-old Betty Thomas by one of the technicians. Earlier in June, a jury also said Charter had to pay 90% of $375 million in compensatory damages to Thomas' family. 

Read more: https://www.wfaa.com/article/news/local/spectrum-7-billion-punitive-damages-murder-of-83-year-old-texas-customer/287-11135ab6-58f9-467b-9383-f8d60f0de83c

Wisconsin Supreme Court Strengthens Employers Defenses in Some Arrest and Conviction Record Discrimination Cases

by Christina L. Wabiszewski - Foley

The Wisconsin Supreme Court recently released its decision in Cree, Inc. v. Labor and Industry Review Commission, overturning long-established precedent regarding when an applicant with a domestic violence conviction record may be disqualified from the position because the conviction is “substantially related” to it. Wisconsin Stat. § 111.335(3) prohibits discrimination based on an applicant’s or employee’s arrest or conviction record unless the record is “substantially related” to the underlying position.

Read more: https://www.foley.com/en/insights/publications/2022/04/wi-supreme-court-strengthens-employers-defenses

The Dust Hasn’t Settled Yet: Employers Must Continue to Be Thoughtful About Criminal Record Screening Policies

by Garrick Chan, Rod Fliegel - JD Supra

Last month, the new chair of the EEOC, Charlotte A. Burrows, was the keynote speaker at a conference regarding new research on criminal recidivism.1 The EEOC has been mostly quiet on the topic of criminal background checks and Title VII since the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit upheld an order enjoining the EEOC from enforcing its Enforcement Guidance against the State of Texas.2 Chair Burrows’ comments reveal the EEOC remains keenly interested in this subject. But this is just one of the reasons why employers, particularly those operating in multiple jurisdictions with a high concentration of entry-level jobs, must continue to be thoughtful about criminal record screening policies. The other reasons include the risk of disparate impact class actions by the plaintiff’s bar, regulatory actions by local fair employment agencies, and increased claims activity by individual plaintiffs, particularly in California and New York. And these concerns fall against the backdrop of widespread class actions under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).3

Read more: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/the-dust-hasn-t-settled-yet-employers-1246648/

Legalization of marijuana expected to have little impact on workplace

by Casey Fabris - The Roanoke Times

As July 1 nears, employers in Virginia are evaluating what the commonwealth’s legalization of marijuana for recreational use means for the workplace.

Experts say the change in the law doesn’t require major adjustments from employers, but it might prompt some to change common policies and practices, such as drug testing.

Read more: https://roanoke.com/business/local/legalization-of-marijuana-expected-to-have-little-impact-on-workplace/article_389ad3b2-d534-11eb-a3f5-5f4bf7fc52ff.html

Know Before You Hire: 3 Employment-Screening Trends in 2021

by Roy Maurer - SHRM

The COVID-19 pandemic will continue to impede aspects of employment screening in 2021, leading employers to use alternative procedures such as conditional hiring and remote drug testing.

"The good news for employers is that as the economy opens back up, courts reopen, and employers and schools resume more normal operations, these issues become self-solving," said Les Rosen, attorney, speaker and the CEO of Employment Screening Resources, a background-screening firm in Novato, Calif. "In the meantime, employers cannot stand still just because the system is less than perfect. Keep in mind that due diligence does not require a 'complete' background check. Due diligence requires that an employer take reasonable steps to fulfill its duty of care."

Read more: https://www.shrm.org/ResourcesAndTools/hr-topics/talent-acquisition/Pages/Background-Checks-Employment-Screening-Trends-2021.aspx