Author: tahearn

Thomas Ahearn is the ESR News Blog Editor for Employment Screening Resources (ESR). The ESR News Blog provides up to date information about the background check industry and covers a variety of topics including Ban the Box, credit reports, criminal records, data privacy, Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) lawsuits, international screening, social media background checks, and workplace violence. He has a B.S. in Mass Communication/Public Relations from Boston University and an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Emerson College.

July 2020 Jobs Report Shows 1.8 Million Jobs Added in Coronavirus Recovery

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn The United States economy added 1.8 million jobs while the unemployment rate declined to 10.2 percent in July 2020, improvements reflecting the resumption of economic activity curtailed due to the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and efforts to contain it, according to the jobs report from the U.S. Bureau of …

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CFPB to Issue Notice on Consumer-Authorized Access to Financial Data

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn On July 24, 2020, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) – a government agency that enforces federal consumer financial law –announced plans to issue an advance notice of proposed rulemaking (ANPR) later in 2020 on consumer-authorized access to financial records, according to a news release from the …

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FDIC Issues Rule on Section 19 of FDI Act to Help Ex-Offenders Find Work

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn On July 24, 2020, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) issued a final rule revising and codifying Section 19 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDI Act) to allow greater employment opportunities for ex-offenders with certain minor criminal records in the banking industry, according to an FDIC …

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Attorney Lester Rosen to Present Session for 2020 PBSA Annual Conference

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn Attorney Lester Rosen, the founder and CEO of leading global background check firm Employment Screening Resources® (ESR), will present a session for the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA) at the first ever “virtual” 2020 PBSA Annual Conference due to the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Rosen– author of …

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Virtual 2020 PBSA Annual Conference Scheduled for September 14 to 15

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn On August 3, 2020, the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA) will begin accepting registrations from attendees of the virtual 2020 PBSA Annual Conference scheduled for September 14 to 15, 2020. The event will be the PBSA’s first ever virtual annual conference due to the ongoing Coronavirus (COVID-19) …

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Poll Finds Nearly Half of Jobs Lost to Coronavirus Layoffs May Be Gone Forever

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn Nearly half of American families – 47 percent – experiencing layoffs during the Coronavirus pandemic believe those jobs may be gone forever when asked in July 2020, an increase from the 20 percent of those families who felt the same way in April 2020, an Associated Press-NORC …

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Shelby County TN Votes to “Ban the Box” on Applications for Government Jobs

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn On July 27, 2020, the Shelby County Commission voted unanimously to “Ban the Box” on job applications that asks applicants who are ex-offenders about their arrest or conviction histories when applying for jobs with the government in Shelby County, Tennessee, according to a report from the Memphis …

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FTC Alleges Purveyor of Background Reports Violated FCRA with False Claims

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn On July 27, 2020, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) filed a complaint on behalf of the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) alleging that a California-based purveyor of background reports deceived consumers with “teaser background reports” that falsely claimed to include information about arrest, criminal, and sex offender …

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Report Finds U.S. Federal Government Background Check Inventory Stabilized

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn The United States federal government background check inventory returned to a stable state of approximately 200,000 background checks in February 2020, down from an estimated backlog of 725,000 cases at its peak in April 2018, according to a report on the “Security Clearance, Suitability/Fitness, and Credentialing Reform …

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Expungement Backlog Made Worse by Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic

Written By ESR News Blog Editor Thomas Ahearn A New Jersey man granted an expungement of his criminal record in May 2019 is still waiting for that record to be cleared due to delays caused by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. “His slate should have been wiped clean by now, but it’s July 2020 and anyone …

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