This week two lawsuits, involving the language used on a background screening disclosure, were in the news.

One of the recent lawsuits was filed in the Northern District of California where the plaintiff asserted that her prospective employer, Alameda Health, used a disclosure form that contained too much and not enough information.

The other suit in the news this week involved a decision by the Ninth Circuit of Appeals regarding Gloria Mitchell v. Winco Foods, LLC, No. 17-35998, (9th Cir. 2018).  The plaintiff in this case alleged that the forms were not FCRA-compliant.

SelectHire® is OPENonline’s total employment screening solution that offers a convenient and FCRA compliant way to order background checks to ensure adherence to best practices and hiring laws. SelectHire allows you to customize your background screening process with selected background checks that our FCRA certificated Background Specialists perform for you. This helps make sure that the background checks are done consistently, accurately, economically, and returned to you in a timely manner. The majority of background screening reports are completed in one day or less!

The Fair Credit Report Act (FCRA) has specific requirements concerning disclosure and authorization forms prior to screening prospective employees. Failing to follow the criteria can lead to litigation.

Some organizations utilize credit reports as part of the background screening process, although there has been debate as to the legality and necessity of checking an applicant's credit prior to a hiring decision.

Generally, a candidate's financial status will not come under scrutiny unless the position necessitates either handling money or having authority over the spending of large amounts of money.

On May 24, 2018 Congress enacted S.2155 - Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act. The law expands consumer rights when they feel they have been, or are about to become, a victim of fraud or identity theft.