RELIABLE BACKGROUND SCREENING INDUSTRY NEWS AND ARTICLES

In an apparent first, the EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) and the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) on March 10, 2014, jointly issued collaborative documents to provide guidance for employers and consumers with regard to employee background checks. For those of us that are actively involved in the background screening industry, there were no startling revelations. However, if you want to read more, here is the link to the EEOC’s announcement, or if you prefer, here is the link to the FTC’s announcement. Posted by: Rudy Troisi. President, Reliable Background Screening.

On Friday, February 7, 2014, a lawsuit was filed against Whole Foods Market California, Inc., in an effort to create a class action lawsuit against this employer for violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). The FCRA requires that an employee background screening authorization form have the sole purpose of providing the required FCRA disclosures, and obtaining the consumer’s authorization to perform the employee background check only. It cannot have any general release of liability. Traditionally, the FTC considered language pertaining to general release of liability to be invalid, but they did not challenge the rest of the authorization for the employee [...]

The deadline has finally arrived for mandatory use of revised FCRA forms What I posted last November, is now a mandatory use of revised FCRA Employee Screening Disclosure and Authorizations forms, as well as revised FCRA Summary of Consumer Rights. This change in forms is a result of the CFPB replacing the FTC as the governing agency over enforcement of the FCRA. The FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act) governs employee background checks performed by employee background screening companies, even when an Employment Credit Report is not part of the employee background screening report. Posted by: Rudy Troisi. President, Reliable Background Screening.

Today we revised our employee screening disclosures and service agreements. This was done in advance of the mandatory requirement, effective January 1, 2013, that these employee screening disclosures, as well as the FCRA Summary of Rights be updated. The reason that these revisions are being required is because the Consumer Financial Protection Board (CFPB) is replacing the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), as the chief enforcer of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). It should be noted that there are no substantive changes in the regulations of the FCRA, but rather the name and contact information for the CFPB is replacing the contact [...]