Two U.S. businesses have agreed to settle FTC charges they falsely claimed they were abiding by an international privacy framework known as the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor, which enables U.S. companies to transfer consumer data from the EU to the US in compliance with EU law….
Posts by Category: Employment Screening
Montana to Join Growing List of States Limiting Access to Social Media?
Legislators in Montana gave final approval to H.B. 342, which would limit an employer’s ability to access the personal social media accounts of applicants and employees. The bill now goes to Governor Steve Bullock’s office. If signed, Montana would become…
Employers Running Background Checks: Top 10 Tips to Avoid Joining the Fair Credit Reporting Act Litigation “Club”
What do Whole Foods, Chuck E. Cheese, Michael’s Stores, Dollar General, Panera, Publix, and K-Mart have in common? Each of these companies has faced lawsuits (including class actions) under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”). Although Congress…
Liars Index® Shows Almost One in Four Resumes Falsified Education – Lyin’ King Chosen
The Liars Index® reached its third highest rate since its inception in 1995, reaching 24.39% for the second half of 2014. “Nearly one in four resumes puffing their education claims is a rate too high to ignore”, said Jude Werra, CMC, president of the…
Class Action Trends in Virginia: Employment Background Reports
Forty percent of the consumer class actions filed in Virginia in 2014 alleging violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”) relate to background reports for employment purposes. With one exception, all of the cases are against consumer reporting…
Advancing a Fair Chance Hiring Agenda
A January 2015 report from the National Employment Law Project (NELP) indicates that “almost one in three adults in the United States has a criminal record that will show up on a routine criminal background check. This creates a serious barrier to employment for…
FTC Shuts Down Diploma Mill Operators
The principal owners doing business as “Jefferson High School Online” and “Enterprise High School Online,” are permanently banned from marketing and selling academic degrees under settlements with the Federal Trade Commission. Defendants led…
When, If Ever, Does Employment Discrimination Against Ex-Offenders Violate Title VII?
Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibits public and private employers from discriminating against job seekers on the base of race, ethnicity, religion or gender, unless the employer can demonstrate a business necessity. These discriminations are widely…
2013: Highest Rate of Employee Theft in 6 Years
“2013 was a gangbuster year for embezzlement in the United States, exceeding even 2012’s previous record pace,” says Christopher T. Marquet, author of The 2013 Marquet Report on Embezzlement, released in December 2014. Vermont topped the list of…
District of Columbia Bans Pot Testing of Job Applicants
The D.C. Council unanimously passed a bill prohibiting employers from testing job applicants for marijuana until after they’ve made a conditional job offer. The bill would allow employers to test for pot after they offer someone a job as well as during…




