According to a recent report by the D.C. Office of Human Rights, over $500,000 of fines have been issued to D.C. employers who did not “Ban the Box”.
Ban the Box requires employers to remove from their hiring applications the check box that asks if applicants have a criminal record. Ban the Box is steadily being adopted by multiple states, cities and counties.
D.C. states that more than 1,800 complaints have been filed since the D.C. Council passed the Fair Criminal Record Screening Act, which prevents employers from screening job applicants by checking criminal histories before an offer is made. A recent article in the Washington Post states, “More than 90 percent of the administrative charges against employers were related to criminal background questions that appeared on job applications.”
If you are an Employer, contact our experts at POEknows and we’ll help keep you and your business in compliance with the Ban the Box program and all other regulations.