With a recent survey showing nine out of ten employers conduct criminal background checks on some or all job candidates, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) held a public meeting in July 2011 examining the use of arrest and conviction records by employers for criminal background checks to determine if the practice was an unfair and discriminatory hiring barrier to job seeking ex-offenders. The EEOC’s actions, coupled with the growing “Ban the Box” movement seeking to remove the criminal history question from job applications, shows that employer use of criminal records is under fire now more than ever. This is Trend Number 1 of the fifth annual ‘Employment Screening Resources (ESR) Top 10 Trends in Background Checks’ for 2012. To view the list of trends, visit http://www.esrcheck.com/ESR-Top-10-Trends-in-Background-Checks-for-2012.php. (more…)

Joining a growing list of cities and states imposing restrictions on employer inquires into criminal record history, the city of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has passed legislation that restricts employer inquiries into, and use of, criminal record history information.

On April 13, 2011, Mayor Michael Nutter signed Philadelphia Bill 110111-A, the Fair Criminal Record Screening Standards Act, which prohibits employers from including criminal record history questions on an employment application and from making personnel decisions based on records of an arrest that did not result in a conviction. (more…)

A story in The Detroit News reports that members of the growing ‘Ban the Box’ Coalition, who persuaded the Detroit City Council to bar the question asking applicants about their criminal histories – and check a box if they have any convictions – from employment applications last year, have asked to extend the ban on inquiring about felony convictions on applications to city vendors and contractors. (more…)