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This newsletter is sent to clients of Employment Screening Resources (ESR) as well as employers, Human Resources and Security professionals, and law firms who have requested information on pre-employment screening, safe hiring, the FCRA and legal compliance. Please note that ESR's statements about any legal matters are not given or intended as legal advice but only general industry information. For specific legal advice, employers should contact their attorney. If this was sent in error, you can be removed from this mailing by simply using the “remove" feature at the end of the newsletter and you will not receive any future newsletters. (Reading time: Less than 5 minutes) ESR Newsletter and Legal Update1. E-Verify Federal Contractor Rules Delayed Until May 21, 2009 3. Australian Court Says Facebook can be used to Serve Legal Papers 4. ESR Speaks 2009 Speaking Schedule 1. E-Verify Federal Contractor Rules Delayed Until May 21, 2009The rules announced by the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) on the use of the E-Verify program for federal contractors have been delayed until May 21, 2009. The E-Verify program, formerly known as the Basic Pilot/Employment Eligibility Verification Program, is designed to allow employers to confirm the legal working status of new hires in seconds. The E-Verify program utilizes databases administered by the Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration, to check the information on an I-9 form to determine that individual’s employment eligibility. Employers can sign up to access the system directly, or use a firm such as Employment Screening Resources (ESR) as their Designated Agent. According to the USCIS web site:
These rules underscore the impact the current immigration debate will have on employers. With the new administration, the extent to which employers will eventually be required to utilize E-Verify on all new hires is not clear. A number of states have passed their own E-Verify requirements. If you have any question about your state, or need the assistance of a Designated Agent to run your E-Verify program, please call ESR Customer Service, or email jcallahan@ESRcheck.com For more information, here is a very long URL that goes to the USCIS site that announced the changes to the federal contractor rules. 2. ESR President Quoted in USA Today on Credit Reports for Employment Use; Described as “Background Check Expert.”USA Today ran a font page story on February 13, 2009, titled, “Job Credit Checks Called Unfair.” The story noted certain criticisms that have been leveled at the use of credit repots for employment purposes and noted that some five states have legislation pending that would seek to place limits on credit reports and ensure they are used only for job related reasons. In addition, the story recounted how the new acting head of the EEOC has been critical of credit reports for employment and has called for guidelines for their use. On the other hand, they can be useful for jobs involving access to money. Also, the story noted that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) “bars people with $5,000 in overdue debt or any federal or state tax lien from working as airport screeners.” In the USA Today article, ESR President, Lester Rosen, was quoted as saying:
USA Today ran a second story on page 3 about workers unable to obtain certain jobs due to a poor credit history. ESR President, Lester S. Rosen, is also quoted in that article:
The article can be located online at http://www.usatoday.com/money/perfi/credit/2009-02-12-creditchecks_N.htm and http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2009-02-12-creditcheckinside_N.htm The ESR newsletter has followed the ongoing issues surrounding credit reports. ESR has taken the position that although credit reports can have value for certain positions, employers should limit their use to positions where there is a clear necessity. Furthermore, employers are well advised to take a credit report with a grain of salt because of potential errors or the possibility that negative information is not a valid predictor of job performance. The ESR Newsletter has reported the following on credit reports: The Use of Employment Credit Reports Seen As a Civil Rights Issue Credit Bureaus Increasing Requirements for Employment Credit Reports New Restrictions on the Use of Credit Reports (from the State of Washington) Urban Myths Continued - Credit Scores are Utilized for Employment Law Firms Face Special Issues in the Use of Background Reports and Credit Checks Dispelling Urban Myths: Credit Scores Not Used for Employment For more information on the use of credit scores and employment, contact Jared Callahan at 415-898-0044 or by e-mail at jcallahan@ESRcheck.com 3. Australian Court Says Facebook can be used to Serve Legal PapersJust when you thought you heard everything, along comes a story off the AP wire from Australia about a court approving the use of Facebook to serve legal papers. Consumers that were worried that their social networking site was being used by employers now have to worry that Facebook or MySpace may be used by lawyers and court, if US Courts were to ever duplicate that example. According to the story, an Australian lawyer had been trying to locate a couple to serve a lien notice telling them they had lost their house as a result of a default. Apparently, the lawyer was unable to locate the couple and complete the legal service of papers. The lawyer turned to the court after discovering the couple had a Facebook page. Although novel, the court approved using Facebook for that purpose. The effort ultimately was not successful because the couple apparently turned up their privacy setting so that the lawyer could not get though. Facebook, however, was apparently pleased with the ruling, because in their view, it validated Facebook “as a reliable, secure and private medium for communication,” and showed the increasing role Facebook is playing in people’s lives. The use of Facebook, MySpace and social networking sites by employers has been controversial in the U.S. For more about using social networking sites for employment, see: http://www.esrcheck.com/articles/Caution-Using-Search-Engines-MySpace-or-Facebook-for-Hiring-Decisions-May-Be-Hazardous-to-Your-Business.php 4. See the ESR Press Release http://www.prleap.com/pr/124407/ on our New Book, The Safe Hiring Audit (click within this headline)ESR Speaks 2009 Speaking Schedule February 19, 2009 Modesto ,CA March 25, 2009 Los Angeles, CA March 26/27, 2009 New Delhi, India April 28/29, 2009 San Francisco, CA May 19/22 2009 Las Vegas, NV June 24, 2009 Webinar July 1, 2009 New Orleans, LA November 8-11, 2009 Tampa, Florida ESR Articles (click for more info) The FCRA in 4 Easy Steps Criminal Records and Employment Applications 10 Safe Hiring Tools Negligent Hiring Please feel free to contact Jared Callahan at ESR at 415-898-0044 or jcallahan@esrcheck.com if you have any questions or comments about the matters in this newsletter. Please note that ESR's statements about any legal matters are not given or intended as legal advice. Employment Screening Resources (ESR) |
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