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Changes in the Law for Massachusetts CORI Criminal Background Checks

Massachusetts its changing its laws for the CORI search, formally known as Criminal Offender Record Information.  Come May 4th, 2021 Massachusetts employers, especially will have to modify their hiring practices with respect to the criminal background checks.

 

Here ae some of the more relevant factors—

Proposed Regulations: Key Points For Employers

Notification To Applicant Prior to Potential Adverse Decision

Employers who intend to take adverse action based on criminal history information must notify the applicant, provide the applicant with several specific pieces of information, afford the applicant an opportunity to dispute the accuracy of the criminal history at issue, and document all steps taken to comply with these requirements. Unlike with the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act, the new CORI requirement exists regardless of whether a third party is used to obtain the criminal history information.

Using a Consumer Reporting Agency (“CRA”) to Make Employment Decisions

Employers using CRAs to collect criminal history information on employees or applicants are required to make certifications to the CRA regarding the employer’s CORI compliance measures, in addition to providing disclosures to the individuals being screened both before the employer requests a criminal history report from the CRA and before taking any adverse action based on information that the CRA provides.

The regulations also provide a separate set of requirements that apply when an employer outsources the decision-making process regarding an employee’s eligibility for hire to the CRA, rather than merely requesting criminal history information from the CRA.

Obtaining CORI from DCJIS

Employers who obtain criminal record information from DCJIS must submit acknowledgement forms for each applicant, verify the identity of the applicant by examining a government-issued identification, and certify that the applicant was properly identified. These acknowledgement forms must be maintained by the employer for one year from the date the applicant signs the form.

 

For more information, we suggest you review the website for the attorneys, Seyfarth Shaw.

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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