Five Things You Should Know About Tenant Screening

by David Anthony and Sarah Crandall - Troutman Pepper

If you have ever leased an apartment, house, or storefront, you have probably agreed to a background check or asked the applicant to do so. What you may not know is that the process of looking into someone’s background is regulated by state, local, and federal law. Here are five points any landlord, tenant, or screening agency should know about tenant screening laws.

Read more: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/five-things-you-should-know-about-81451/

Montgomery County, MD Amends Ban-the-Box Legislation

by Steven Kaplan and Rosa Trembour - Littler

On November 20, 2020, the Montgomery County, Maryland Council approved amendments to its 2014 “ban-the-box” legislation.  The original legislation (Bill 36-14) prohibited employers with 15 or more full-time employees in Montgomery County from conducting a criminal background check of a job applicant, or otherwise inquiring about the criminal or arrest history of an applicant, prior to the completion of a first interview.  Bill 35-20 expands the scope of the previous legislation by prohibiting background checks until after a conditional job offer has been extended, and redefining “employer” to include any employer with one or more full-time employees in Montgomery County.

Read more: https://www.littler.com/publication-press/publication/montgomery-county-md-amends-ban-box-legislation

Bill to overhaul Canada's privacy laws coming soon

by Catharine Tunney - CBC News

As the number of high-profile online consumer security breaches continues to grow, the federal government is expected to introduce a bill soon to shake up Canada's privacy laws — possibly as early as this week.

Innovation Minister Navdeep Bains signalled plans to introduce the legislation late last week on the House of Commons notice paper.

Read more: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/privacy-bill-bains-1.5801613

New Guidance Clarifies Protections For California Workers With Criminal Records

by Alonzo Martinez - Forbes

Bolstering Covid-19 worker protections, the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing ("DFEH") recently clarified the state’s criminal background check regulations. The new guidance expands the scope of California’s Fair Chance Act and places employers on notice regarding DFEH’s intended enforcement of the law.

Read more: https://www.forbes.com/sites/alonzomartinez/2020/11/03/new-guidance-clarifies-protections-for-california-workers-with-criminal-records/?sh=7a6d741f6280

7 Tips for International Recruiting Programs in the Era of GDPR and Emerging U.S. Laws

by Morrison Foerster

When your organization is searching to fill a new position, you understandably want to find out as much as possible about the candidates who apply. Aside from determining whether the candidate has the specific skill set, education, and experience necessary to do the job, you want to make sure that the person will fit in with the team. Do they have a positive attitude and integrity? Are they flexible and hard working? Are they a good communicator and team player? Are they dependable and creative? If possible, you want to hear from references provided by the candidate to confirm that the candidate was sincere and meets your organization’s needs. You might even want to check how they behave on the Internet.

Read more: https://www.mofo.com/resources/insights/201030-international-recruiting-programs.html

Mitigating FCRA Risks in the COVID-19 World

by Hunton Andrews Kurth

In the years leading up to the current COVID-19 pandemic, consumer litigation claims related to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) doubled.1 Although there has been a slight decrease in FCRA filings since March 2020 (due in large part to court closures and stay at home orders resulting from COVID-19), we expect FCRA claims will once again be on the rise as courts reopen and the relief measures under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES Act”)2 are tested. Indeed, in the months following the initial COVID-19 outbreak, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”) received its highest number of FCRA consumer complaints, with over 14% mentioning coronavirus keywords.3

Read more: https://www.huntonak.com/en/insights/mitigating-fcra-risks-in-the-covid-19-world.html

DFEH Updates “Ban The Box” Regulations And Provides FAQ

by Meagan Bainbridge and Weintraub Tobin - JD Supra

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 employers in California to ask about the criminal record of job applicants before making a conditional job offer. 

Read more: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/dfeh-updates-ban-the-box-regulations-16361/

Hawaii Tightens Ban-the-Box Law, Further Limiting Use of Past Criminal History in Work Decisions

by Richard Greenberg and Andrew L. Pepper - The National Law Review

Hawaii has narrowed the scope of what employers can consider regarding an individual’s conviction history when making employment decisions. Hawaii employers have long been required to limit their consideration of felony and misdemeanor convictions to a 10-year lookback period, unless they fell within one of the statutory exemptions as part of its longstanding “ban the box” legislation. State law has further required employers to apply a “rational relationship” test before denying a prospective or current employee a position following a background check, which means an employer may only consider those convictions occurring in the permissible time period if there is a “rational relationship” between the convicted crime and the prospective job.

Read more: https://www.natlawreview.com/article/hawaii-tightens-ban-box-law-further-limiting-use-past-criminal-history-work

Legislature approves automatic expungement bills

by David Eggert - Associated Press

LANSING — Michigan would automatically expunge criminal records and ease the application process for those convicted of marijuana offenses under sweeping "clean slate" bills that received final legislative approval Thursday.

Read more: https://www.crainsdetroit.com/government/legislature-approves-automatic-expungement-bills

Recruiters’ legal obligations when workers switch occupations

by Carla Feakins - People Management

Covid-19 has driven rapid changes in the jobs market, with some roles now in extremely high demand while others are almost disappearing. Recently published data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) highlights that between January and June 2020 more workers changed occupation than during the same period last year, with over half simultaneously moving into a different major industry.

Read more: https://www.peoplemanagement.co.uk/experts/legal/recruiters-legal-obligations-workers-switch-occupations?utm_source=mc&utm_medium=email&utm_content=PM_Daily_17092020.Employment+law:+Recruiters%E2%80%99+legal+obligations+when+workers+switch+occupations&utm_campaign=7295441&utm_term=5459367