Employee Background Check FCRA compliance

Submitted by kirksanderslaw on

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Background check employee
Corporate attorney North Carolina

The Federal Trade Commission has updated guidance for compliance with the Federal Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) when doing background checks on a new hire.

Below is some background info and here is the link to the full pdf https://www.ftc.gov/tips-advice/business-center/guidance/background-checks-what-employers-need-know?utm_source=govdelivery

If you get background information (for example, a credit or criminal background report) from a company in the business of compiling background information, there are additional procedures the FCRA requires beforehand:

  • Tell the applicant or employee you might use the information for decisions about his or her employment. This notice must be in writing and in a stand-alone format. The notice can’t be in an employment application. You can include some minor additional information in the notice (like a brief description of the nature of consumer reports), but only if it doesn’t confuse or detract from the notice.
  • If you are asking a company to provide an “investigative report” – a report based on personal interviews concerning a person’s character, general reputation, personal characteristics, and lifestyle – you must also tell the applicant or employee of his or her right to a description of the nature and scope of the investigation.
  • Get the applicant’s or employee’s written permission to do the background check. This can be part of the document you use to notify the person that you will get the report. If you want the authorization to allow you to get background reports throughout the person’s employment, make sure you say so clearly and conspicuously.
  • Certify to the company from which you are getting the report that you:
    • notified the applicant and got their permission to get a background report;
    • complied with all of the FCRA requirements; and
    • don’t discriminate against the applicant or employee, or otherwise misuse the information in violation of federal or state equal opportunity laws or regulations.
  • If you are an employer with legal needs, contact Hendrick Bryant Nerhood Sanders & Otis LLP to handle you matter. 336-723-7200. We litigate and handle corporate matters