With the number of lawsuits brought under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) more than doubling since 2009, many have been brought on a class basis for simple procedural violations and resulted in multi-million dollar settlements. Several things to keep in mind: Employers are required to both disclose their intention to obtain a consumer report and obtain written consent from applicants or current employees prior to requesting a consumer report; employers who wish to conduct background checks or obtain consumer reports of either job applicants or current employees must disclose to the applicant/employee that the employer may obtain a consumer report for employment purposes in a “clear and conspicuous” way and in a “document that consists solely on the disclosure;” the employer must also receive written authorization from the applicant/employee to obtain the consumer report; and an employer who decides to disqualify an applicant or terminate an employee based partly or wholly on a consumer report obtained under the FCRA is taking an adverse action and must provide two adverse action notices to the applicant/employee.
