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A Reminder–Beginning October 1st, Connecticut Employers Will Be Restricted in Conducting Employment Credit Reports

A remidner to all Connecticut employers–

As we  wrote not long ago, Connecticut has joined a number of other states in restricting credit reports as a background check for employment screening.  Connecticut  has  joined with Maryland, Oregon, Washington, Hawaii, and Illinois in limited the use of employment credit reports on the grounds they may discriminate against otherwise viable employment candidates.   Michigan and at least a dozen other states are considering similar measures.

Effective October 1, 2011, a new law in Connecticut

S.B. 361, signed by Governor Dannel Malloy, will prohibit certain employers from using credit reports in making hiring and employment decisions regarding existing employees or job applicants.

S.B. 361 applies to all employers in Connecticut with at least one employee and prohibits almost all employers from requiring job applicants or current employees to consent to a request for a credit report as a condition of employment.  Exceptions to the statute are: employers that are financial institutions as defined under law; credit reports required to be obtained by employers by law; and credit reports “substantially related to the employee’s current or potential job.” These “substantially related” reports are allowable if the position:

Is a managerial position that involves setting the direction or control of a business, division, unit or an agency of a business;

Involves access to personal or financial information of customers, employees or the employer, other than information customarily

provided in a retail transaction;

Involves a fiduciary responsibility to the employer, as defined under the law;

Provides an expense account or corporate debit or credit card;

Provides access to certain confidential or proprietary business information, as defined under the law; or

Involves access to the employer’s nonfinancial assets valued at $2,005 or more, including, but not limited to, museum and library

collections and to prescription drugs and other pharmaceuticals.

 

By Gordon Basichis

Gordon Basichis is the Co-Founder of Corra Group, specializing in pre-employment background checks and corporate research. He has been a marketing and media executive and has worked in the entertainment industry, the financial, health care and technology sectors. He is the author of the best selling Beautiful Bad Girl, The Vicki Morgan Story, a non-fiction novel that helped define exotic sexuality in the late twentieth century. He is the author of the Constant Travellers and has recently completed a new book, The Guys Who Spied for China, dealing with Chinese Espionage in the United States. He has been a journalist for several newspapers and is a screenwriter and producer.

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