Month: March 2020

Temporary Flexibility of Form I-9 Requirements in Response to COVID-19

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) recently announced temporary flexibility in compliance with Form I-9 requirements during remote on-boarding. The article link below gives specific info on how employers with remote employees can obtain, remotely inspect, and comply with Section 2 of Form I-9.

Here’s a quick read on the latest developments:

  1. The in-person requirement for the Form I-9 is temporarily suspended for companies closed or working remotely due to COVID-19. Employers will not be required to review employee identity and related documents in the employee’s physical presence. Instead, inspection of Section 2 documents will take place remotely (e.g., over video link, fax or email, etc.).
  2. Employers must still create a case in E-Verify within three business days from the date of hire. “COVID-19” is entered as the reason for the physical inspection delay in the Section 2 Additional Information field once physical inspection takes place after normal operations resume.
  3. Once the documents have been physically inspected, the employer should add “documents physically examined” with the date of inspection to the Section 2 additional information field on the Form I-9, or to section 3 as appropriate.
  4. Once normal operations resume, all employees on-boarded using remote verification must—within three business days—complete in-person verification of identity and employment eligibility documentation for Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification.

For your reference, here is further detail. PLEASE READ MORE. Drop an email to support@acheckglobal.com if you have any questions.

Compliance Clip March 2020

CREDIT CHECKS

House Passes Bill Restricting Employer Credit Checks

The House of Representatives passed the Comprehensive CREDIT Act of 2020, which would change federal laws pertaining to consumer reporting agencies and credit checks in a number of ways. Significantly for employers, the Act includes an amendment to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), which would restrict the use of credit information for most employment decisions. PLEASE NOTE: The Act now heads to the Senate where it is unlikely to pass in its current form . . . we’ll monitor and keep you updated.
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SUBSTANCE ABUSE TESTING

NEW YORK City Employers Must Say Bye-Bye to Pre-Employment Marijuana Testing
A common onboarding practice is about to become illegal in New York City. Effective May 10, 2020, most New York City employers will be prohibited from requiring job applicants to undergo testing for marijuana. The new law makes mandatory marijuana testing of prospective employees equivalent to an unlawful discriminatory practice, such as denying a job applicant employment because of his or her race, gender, or any other protected characteristic.
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Department of Transportation Cautions Employers About CBD Use by Regulated Workers
If a CBD product has a concentration of more than 0.3% of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), an amount generally viewed to be sufficient to produce a psychoactive effect, then it is an unlawful Schedule I controlled substance under federal law. Problems arise when employees test positive for THC but then claim to be using a “THC-free” or “pure CBD” product.
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AS A REMINDER: At A-Check, we’re happy to help implement a drug screening program that meets your evolving needs—or make adjustments to the program you’re already running with us. Just give us a call at 877-345-2021 and ask to speak with someone on your Client Relations team.

BAN THE BOX LAW

NEW ENGLAND Ban the Box Trend: Navigating Criminal History Checks in the Hiring Process
Many states and localities have been adopting Ban the Box, prohibiting employers (including private employers) from asking applicants to disclose information concerning their criminal histories prior to an initial interview or a conditional offer of employment. Currently, all New England states except Maine and New Hampshire have a Ban the Box law that is applicable to private employers.  Bills that would have applied Ban the Box to private employers in both Maine and New Hampshire died in last year’s legislative sessions, but there is a good chance that similar legislation will resurface.
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DATA PRIVACY

WISCONSIN Proposes “Groundbreaking” Data Privacy Law Modeled After GDPR
A trio of consumer data privacy bills modeled after Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) has been introduced in the Wisconsin State Assembly. The three bills, collectively dubbed the Wisconsin Data Privacy Act (WDPA), were sponsored by Republican State Representative Shannon Zimmerman, who is seeking to make Wisconsin “the most consumer-friendly state in our nation on data privacy.” If enacted, the WDPA would take effect July 31, 2022.
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State Consumer Privacy Law Round-Up
As the likelihood of the federal government passing a timely, workable national consumer privacy law before the November election decreases, states from coast to coast have been busy. According to the National Conference of State Legislatures, over 150 new consumer privacy bills were introduced in 25 states and Puerto Rico in 2019. This link is a comprehensive summary of privacy bills introduced thus far in 2020:
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SALARY HISTORY

Ninth Circuit Reaffirms Only Job-Related Factors Will Excuse Pay Disparity Under Federal EPA, Prior Salary Not Job-Related
On February 27, 2020, the Ninth Circuit issued a long-anticipated decision.  The appellate court affirmed its prior holding and concluded that: (1) only job-related factors may excuse wage disparities between comparable employees within the context of a federal Equal Pay Act (EPA) claim, and (2) prior salary, alone or in consideration with other factors, is not job-related, and therefore cannot serve as an affirmative defense to an EPA claim.
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Questions? We’re here to help!

Compliant Background Screening and your Employment Program

If it’s worth saying, it’s worth repeating . . .
and then backing that up with a link to a great article we found!

Performing compliant, accurate background screening helps minimize risk to your company and your employees by confirming candidates are who they say they are, while at the same time maximizing your ability to hire and retain strong, capable employees for the long run.

But keep in mind that above all, when you perform background screening through a company that is in the business of gathering and reporting background records and verification information (like A-Check Global), you as the employer must ALSO do your part to comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

Why such focus on the compliance of background screening?

We can’t make it any clearer than to say failure to comply with FCRA requirements will surely expose you to the risk of expensive and ongoing litigation. It’s important to regularly review your program for:

  • Adherence to FCRA requirements for Disclosure and Authorization forms
  • Compliance with permissible purpose and to what extent information can be used
  • Non-discriminatory consideration for all candidates
  • And confirmation that the Consumer Reporting Agency you use (like A-Check Global) also maintains compliance with applicable laws and regulations.

Got a minute? Here’s a great read:

We found an excellent article detailing compliance requirements and the utilization of background checks by employers.

READ MORE

We are here to help!
If you have questions about your current screening program, please don’t hesitate to reach out to us. Contact A-Check Global here to get started.