Guidelines for Use of Employment Credit Reports in Ohio

As we've discussed a number of times in the past, there are a number of restrictions, recommendations, guidelines, etc. about how to use a credit report when making a hiring decision. We found these guidelines on the Ohio Civil Rights Newsletter from October. They are worth the read if you currently utilize or are considering utilizing credit reports for your hiring decisions in the state of Ohio. The following paragraph taken from the newsletter give you the gist:

In the light of the discriminatory impact on minority job applicants, employers should be extremely cautious in their use of consumer credit reports as a tool for screening job applicants. The policy guidance, as approved, makes clear that when an applicant is denied employment on the basis of his or her consumer credit report, the employer should have valid, objective proof--preferably in the form of a job validation study--that its use of these reports is not only related to the job in question, but also based upon a business necessity. More