EEOC Convenes Public Hearing Next Wednesday (October 20th) on the Use of Credit Checks by Employers

On Wednesday, the EEOC announced that it will hold a public meeting to consider the use of credit history and credit checks in the employee screening process. The hearing will be on the first floor of the EEOC building at 131 M St., N.E., Washington, D.C. 20507. The Federal Register notice is available here.

On September 23, the House Financial Services Committee held hearings on H.R. 3149, the so-called Equal Opportunity for All Act. This proposed legislation would amend the Fair Credit Reporting Act to outlaw reliance on consumer credit reports by employers in making employment decisions, including hiring.

Note also that there is significant activity at the state level. For example, Illinois recently enacted the Employee Credit Privacy Act which prohibits most Illinois employers from basing employment decisions on an applicants’ or employees’ personal credit information. See Peter A. Steinmeyer and Mark M. Trapp of Epstein, Becker, and Green, P.C., “Beware of the Newly Enacted Illinois Employee Credit Privacy Act,” available here.


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