Rejected job applicant Kevin Wills recently filed a proposed class action in federal court in Georgia, alleging that Starbucks violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) when it reviewed the applicants’ respective consumer background reports without providing them with a copy. The FCRA requires employers to 1. Certify to job applicants that consumer background reports will be used for a “permissible purpose,” 2. Provide written disclosure and receive written authorization from job applicants before obtaining consumer reports; 3. Provide notice to job applicants; and 4. Provide job applicants with an adverse action notice. State laws also may restrict an employer’s use of consumer background reports.
