Relates to the written notice required upon a person's denial of a license

BILL NUMBER:A11055

Title of bill

An act to amend the correction law, in relation to writ- ten statements upon denial of a license

Purpose or general idea of bill

This bill clarifies an omission in Article 23A of the correction law that protects applicants with criminal histories from employment discrimination but does not extend that same protection to individuals at their current place of employment.

This bill addresses such omission by applying the same requirements to employers upon taking adverse action to current employees on the basis of one or more criminal convictions that occurred prior to the instant employment as current law already requires of employers in denying applicants for employment on the same basis.

Summary of specific provisions

Section one of the bill amends section 754 of the correction law to clarify that persons against whom at adverse action is taken by an employer of licensing agency based on a prior criminal record have the right to receive written reasons for such adverse action.

Section two is the effective date.

History

In 2007, the Legislature, recognizing that it was inconsistent to protect applicants with criminal histories from employment discrimi- nation but not extend that same protection to individuals who ware already employed, amended §751 of the Correction Law, so that current employees and license holders with criminal histories, as well as appli- cants, were protected against unfair discrimination.

Unfortunately, a companion piece to that section of the law, §754 of the Correction Law, which also only pertains to applicants for employment, was not amended at the same time to extend its applicability to current employees.

As currently written, §754 requires employers who deny a license to employment to people with criminal histories to write a statement, upon request, explaining the reasons for the denial. In order to ensure that the protections of the Correction Law are consistent, this bill extends to current employees the same protection.

Justification

The requirement of §751 of the Correction Law that employers, upon request, provide a written statement setting forth the reasons why they denied a person with a criminal record a job or license, has proven very helpful in facilitating the gainful employment of individuals with criminal histories. For example, in some cases, employers have relied on background checks that contain erroneous infor- mation. When apprised of that fact, applicants have the opportunity to correct those inaccuracies so that they can more easily find employment in the future. In other cases employers occasionally are unfamiliar with New York's law that prohibits discrimination based on criminal history.

When they receive a request under §754 for an explanation of why they denied a person with a criminal history a job or license, they become acquainted with New York's anti-discrimination law and sometimes reverse their decision.

Current employees should have the same opportunities as applicants to determine the reason for an employer's adverse action against them. By extending §754's protection, current employees will have a better chance to remain productive, tax-paying, and law-abiding citizens. Section 754 of the Correction Law is an important tool in promoting New York's strong, longstanding policy of encouraging the employment of qualified individuals with criminal records and should be extended to current employees.

Legislative history

New bill.

Fiscal implications

None

Effective date

Immediate.