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Federal contractors to be limited on criminal background checks

February 1, 2020 By Andrew Smith

Private employers with federal contracts will soon be prohibited from requesting criminal history information from candidates at the onset of the hiring process; instead, they will have to wait until after an offer is made.

The Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act of 2019 (Act) was discreetly tucked into the Defense Spending Bill approved on December 20, 2019.  The Act is part of a growing national trend of “Ban the Box” laws, referring to the question on job applications asking whether a candidate has been convicted of a crime.  Ban the Box laws largely have bipartisan support and, according to the National Employment Law Project, have been approved in 35 states and more than 150 cities across the United States.

As of March 31, 2017, the U.S. Office of Personnel Management already required most federal agencies to wait until the conditional offer stage of the hiring process to request criminal history information from a job candidate.  The Act supersedes this regulation and applies the prohibition to both the federal government and now certain private employers.

Continue reading at:  Ackerman

Filed Under: Contracting News Tagged With: background check, ban-the-box, Fair Chance Act

Congress passes federal “ban-the-box” law for federal agencies and government contractors

January 23, 2020 By Andrew Smith

Congress has passed the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act of 2019 (“Fair Chance Act”) as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act, which was enacted on December 17, 2019.

This federal “ban-the-box” law prohibits federal agencies and federal contractors from asking about a job applicant’s criminal history until after a conditional offer of employment has been made.

The Fair Chance Act, which received bipartisan support, will go into effect two years from the date of enactment.  The measure provides exceptions for three types of positions, including: (1) positions related to law enforcement and national security duties; (2) positions requiring access to classified information; and (3) positions for which it is required by law to access criminal history information before the conditional offer stage.

The Fair Chance Act directs the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) and General Services Administration (GSA) to issue implementing regulations.  Violations by contractors are subject to an array of penalties ranging from warning, to suspension of payment.

Continue reading at:  Akin Gump

Filed Under: Contracting News Tagged With: ban-the-box, Fair Chance Act

What the Fair Chance Act means for government contractors

January 17, 2020 By Andrew Smith

The “Fair Chance Act” was signed into law as 2019 came to a close, just one part of the National Defense Authorization Act.  It prohibits federal contractors that have openings for positions within the scope of federal contracts, as well as all federal agencies, from inquiring about or otherwise seeking criminal history information from an applicant until after a conditional job offer has been extended.

The Act won’t actually go into effect until December 20, 2021, but it could change the hiring process for some contractors.  It “bans the box,” which means that federal contractors would be prohibited from asking applicants about their criminal histories until a contractor extends a conditional job offer.  Moreover, it prohibits contractors from even seeking any information about criminal activities from other sources.

Continue reading at:  Clearance Jobs

Filed Under: Contracting Tips Tagged With: Fair Chance Act, NDAA

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