Legislation that would prohibit federal contractors from asking about or considering applicant criminal history information before the last stages of the hiring process has been approved by Committees in both the U.S. House of Representatives and Senate and is now teed up for floor action in each body.
The so-called Fair Chance Act (S. 387; H.R. 1076), alternatively known as the Fair Chance to Compete for Jobs Act of 2019, was approved by the House Oversight and Reform Committee on March 26, 2019. The Senate version of the bill was approved by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs earlier this year. Unlike most workplace-related bills, the Fair Chance Act has bipartisan support, increasing the odds that it could be enacted during this Congress.
In the meantime, the state of New Mexico has joined 11 other states that now have their own “ban-the-box” laws, and Colorado is expected to soon follow.
Members of the Center for Workplace Compliance (CWC) can read more here.