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Effective February 1, 2009
A New York state employment law has changed, and that change has gone into effect as of February 1, 2009. This law may impact how you use criminal background check information to make eligibility decisions. We have provided information within the Support page that will assist you in further understanding the changes to the New York state law. If you have an applicant that is being considered for employment in the state of New York, we recommend you review the information below and the information found on the Support page under New York State Law Update. TalentWise is not providing legal advice and we strongly suggest the information provided below be reviewed by you and your legal counsel.
For your convenience, we have provided a new sample Disclosure and Release form for the state of New York and copy of Article 23-A, Correction Law for you to provide to each applicant on whom you order reports.
In connection with criminal reports furnished to you by a Consumer Reporting Agency (CRA), you have a responsibility under New York law to evaluate the relationship of any conviction for the position sought. Under New York statutory law §296(15) Executive Law, such an analysis is also a defense to a negligent hiring/retention claim. If a §752, Article 23-A, Correction Law review of past convictions is conducted then the employer can have past offenses excluded from evidence.
In evaluating the criminal record with the position sought, the category of the offense may or may not relate to the job in question. For example, a recent misdemeanor theft may be relevant to a job where the employee is entrusted with the company's or customer's money/property, but an old felony conviction for the possession of a controlled substance may not be relevant at all. A drunk driving conviction may be relevant to a driving job, but it is probably not relevant to a secretarial position. It is our understanding that the law requires that the employers judge each applicant with each position individually.
If you have any additional questions, please contact your TalentWise Account Manager or Sales Representative.