POE wants to thank Sarah Callander and Mary-Denise Davis of the Office of the Public Defender, for allowing us to attend the 5th Annual Back to the Neighborhood: How to Succeed with a Criminal Record, an event sponsored by the Office of Public Defender and the Justice Policy Institute. Attendees of this July 23, 2015 event took part in community dialogues, learned about current practices and were offered legal assistance. POE sat in on a… [Read More]
Violating Federally Required Red Flag Regulation Program?
Employers and property managers/owners are required by federal law to identify, detect, respond and resolve Red Flag discrepancies, when screening prospective employees and prospective residents. The purpose of the Program is to prevent and mitigate Identity Theft and Identity Fraud. Resolving the Red Flag discrepancies is a relative easy, administrative type action, but it must be done. You and all end users of the consumer reports or investigative consumer reports are charged with doing so…. [Read More]
Compliance Program Committee (CPC) meetings.
The vast majority of recent FCRA related class action law suits, and there are MANY, claim Authorization/Disclosure violations or non-adherence to Adverse Action Notification regulations. The Class Action litigation alleges Authorizations/Disclosures are non-compliant, in part, because Companies insert “extraneous information” within the body of the Authorizations (e.g. waivers, acknowledgments, etc.). POE requested and received guidance from the DC Law Office of Arnall, Golden & Gregory, LLP, in revising the Authorizations & Disclosures that we recommend… [Read More]
Employers: Important Details on Background Screening
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, about 92 million Americans have a criminal history on file. In the event that employers come across an applicant with a criminal record, it is imperative that these employers are aware of their obligations under the Fair Credit Reporting Act and an ever increasing wave of federal, state and local laws. Experts advise employers to stay current with the state and federal regulations that govern the use of… [Read More]
Screening Process Considerations
Did you know that an important consideration for a non-profit or business owners is to place the right people into the positions you need. Sometimes, human error, the stress of running a business or simply the sense that you want to replace the empty position immediately can cause mistakes. Here are a few items to consider when screening potential employees or volunteers: Follow all steps in the screening process – do not skip areas to… [Read More]
Ban the Box – 2015 Update
In a January, 2015 report, reflecting the growing political consensus behind “smart on crime” reforms, the National Employment Law Project (NELP) is making the case for a federal Ban the Box initiative. In great part because more than 100 jurisdictions, including 13 states, the District of Columbia and 96 cities and counties, have embraced “fair chance” hiring policies by adopting “ban the box” and other hiring reforms. The report, entitled – Advancing a Federal Fair… [Read More]