Legislators in the state of Hawaii have drafted a bill that would prohibit employers from using credit reports when conducting employment background checks, similar to the proposed legislation in Connecticut (House Bill #5521).

The stated purpose of Hawaii House Bill 31 is "to protect individuals from discriminatory employment practices by making it unlawful for an employer to refuse to hire or employ, or to bar or discharge from employment, or otherwise discriminate against any individual because of an individual's credit history or credit report."

A similar measure was proposed and nearly passed into legislation in California last year, until Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed it. The argument against this legislation is the same argument that can be made for the Connecticut bill. In rejecting the bill Gov. Schwarzenegger said, "This bill would significantly increase businesses' exposure to civil actions over the use of credit checks. Further, the bill would increase administrative costs to those employers who must legitimately use credit reports as a screening tool by requiring that the employer first abide by its onerous requirements. California employers and businesses have inherent needs to obtain information about applicants for employment. The bill would become a new employer obstacle to the use of available information needed to make hiring decisions."

If you are on the fence on this one, just remember the law of unintended consequences. Let's say that you are considering hiring a Chief Financial Officer and you no longer have the ability to conduct a credit report. The credit report might have revealed that this individual had several liens and judgments and that they owed more money than their salary could provide. In short, the credit report would have revealed a lack of personal responsibility on behalf of the candidate. Now that candidate has unfettered access to your organization's financial records, bank accounts, etc. What that person does in anyone's guess? Is it worth the chance? Now let's expand that out to a bank employee or IT person. Both have access to a significant amount of customer money and data. Still on the fence?

If you are an employer in the state of Hawaii and believe that this will have an adverse affect on your business, I encourage you to contact Jon Karamatsu and, or Robert Herkes.

Read Hawaii House Bill 31

Article by, Nick Fishman and courtesy of EmployeescreenIQ

Posted by Candice Arnold on February 27, 2009 at 1:03 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

We have been informed by the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS) that legislators in the state of Connecticut have drafted a bill that would prohibit employers from using credit reports when conducting employment background checks.

The stated purpose of Connecticut House Bill 5521 is "to prevent discrimination against prospective employees on the basis of their credit history." While this is a worthy goal, the abolishment of this important screening tool is not in the best interest of the state's employers or its citizens.

A similar measure was proposed and nearly passed into legislation in California last year, until Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. The argument against this legislation is the same argument that can be made for the Connecticut bill. In rejecting the bill Gov. Schwarzenegger said, "This bill would significantly increase businesses' exposure to civil actions over the use of credit checks. Further, the bill would increase administrative costs to those employers who must legitimately use credit reports as a screening tool by requiring that the employer first abide by its onerous requirements. California employers and businesses have inherent needs to obtain information about applicants for employment. The bill would become a new employer obstacle to the use of available information needed to make hiring decisions."

Read Connecticut House Bill 5521

If you are an employer in the state of Connecticut and believe that this will have an adverse affect on your business, I encourage you to contact State Representative Matthew Lesser at:

Legislative Office Building, Room 4014
Hartford, CT 06106-1591
(860) 240-8585
1-800-842-8267
Matthew.Lesser@cga.ct.gov

Article by, Nick Fishman and courtesy of EmployeescreenIQ

Posted by Candice Arnold on February 20, 2009 at 9:52 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

The Eugene S. Pulliam Internship Program was created to encourage interested college students to seek a career in newspapers.

I selected this internship because of recent communications with students unable to get internships in journalism due to missed deadlines. Although many internships in journalism do have early deadlines, there are also opportunities still available with smaller publications across the country. Students can still prospect with newspapers and smaller publications to see if they are still accepting applications for interns. Continue reading ...

Article by, Penny Loretto, a career counselor at a small liberal arts college in upstate New York, has her own private career counseling practice, Career Choice, and is About.com's Guide to Internships.

Posted by Candice Arnold on February 19, 2009 at 3:51 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

In an effort to give those with criminal records a fair shot at gaining employment, the town of New Haven, CT is eliminating the criminal record check box on their job applications. This is a bold move designed to encourage the city's hiring managers to review a candidate's resume and determine if the qualifications fit the job requirements. If they meet the hiring criteria, then the city will conduct a background check. At that point, they would make a determination as to whether the criminal record prohibits them from the job.

The positive side of this is that it will give those with criminal records a better chance of finding work. Studies show that recidivism rates are significantly diminished when convicts are able to find employment following incarceration. From a practicality standpoint though, there will be some times where the hiring manager invests much time and effort in finding the perfect candidate only to find that the results of their background check eliminates them from consideration.

Good practice? You decide. Here's the full story from the New York Times.

New Haven May Ease Hiring Process of Ex-Criminals

EVEN as the mayor is talking about possibly laying off city workers to close a budget gap, other officials are trying to make a change in city hiring practices to make it easier for people with criminal records to get hired.

On job applications for city jobs and jobs with city contractors, applicants must now check a box to indicate they have a criminal record. The human services committee of the Board of Aldermen unanimously approved a proposal two weeks ago to remove the box on the job applications, and on Tuesday the full board will vote on the matter.

If the proposal is approved, New Haven will join other cities, including San Francisco, Baltimore and Minneapolis, that have voted to remove the question on their job applications. Proponents of the move say that people who have done their time deserve jobs, too, and the current job application question usually means they are dismissed out of hand no matter what their skills.

"We're anxious because of the overwhelming need" for employment for that group, said Kica Matos, administrator of the city's Community Services Administration, which presented the proposal, known as ban the box.

"If not now, when?" she said, acknowledging that the city is talking of laying off people, not adding to its staff. If people who have served their time cannot find employment, she said, it is easier for them to fall back into criminal activity.

More

Article by, Nick Fishman and courtesy of EmployeescreenIQ

Posted by Candice Arnold on February 17, 2009 at 8:57 AM | Leave a Comment (0)

Obviously, any "Best of" list is pretty subjective, so don't get all crazy if you hate one of these companies or if you're convinced that yours is clearly superior. The 5 companies listed below were culled from the 25 Best Places to Work article that appears in the February 2009 issue of Baltimore Magazine. I just added a little different information direct from the companies' sites. In no particular order:

Merkle is a database marketing agency that is headquartered in Columbia, MD. Its corporate campus there houses 450 of its 1100 employees nationwide. Merkle has already signed 25 new clients for 2009 and the business appears to be about as rock solid as you'll find in the current economic climate. IT job seekers who may have been unlucky with various IT staffing services may want to take a closer look at what Merkle has to offer. Great company with progressive ideas about keeping employees happy and engaged.
CollabraSpace is based in Annapolis, MD and currently has "only" 33 employees. I stress that because that's the type of environment where top IT talent can make a significant and rapid impact. The company is a provider of business collaboration and integration solutions for both the public and private sectors.
G.1440 is an IT consulting firm that is based in Baltimore (Hampden, specifically) with 77 employees. They have evolved over the years to embody everything that a top IT job seeker is looking for - the stereotypically "cool" workspace, complete with the laid-back attitude and overachiever mindset. If you have any doubts about this place, stop by and check out their pool.
Raytheon Solipsys has the best name of any IT employer in Maryland - and it's a pretty hardcore operation. It's located in Fulton, MD, which sounds like a nice place. A wholly-owned subsidiary of the Raytheon Company, Raytheon Solipsys develops command and control solutions for the Department of Defense and Homeland Security. I'm guessing you'll need a clearance to sniff their facilities, but it must be a very interesting place to work.
Tessco Technologies is dedicated to everything wireless. The company is located in Timonium and Hunt Valley, with over 800 employees in Maryland. If you think the company looks like a fit, just make sure you know your wireless -- I can assure you that it will come up during the interview.

Article by, Mick and courtesy of Insourced blog

Posted by Candice Arnold on February 6, 2009 at 1:55 PM | Leave a Comment (0)

although the economy is bad, new jobs and career fields are being created, thanks to the ever-growing popularity of "going green." It's unclear whether global warming is a new jobsdirect result of human beings polluting the atmosphere or if, as many scientists suggest, it's the result of the Earth going through its natural cycles. What I do know is that "going green" isn't likely to do any harm and it's creating jobs, so why not embrace it.

Of course the new jobs require people with specialized skills. In New Mexico, this issue is being met head on. According to an article in the New Mexico Business Weekly, Student Interest in Installing Photvoltaic Systems On the Rise, there are more students than San Juan College, in Farmington, can accomodate. Photovoltaic is synonomous with solar electric.

Across the entire state, students are showing interest in green-collar jobs. To help facilitate this move, the Regional Development Corp., is forging a "new coalition for work force training called New Mexico Green Collar Jobs Partnership." So far, five colleges have joined:

San Juan College
Santa Fe Community College
Northern New Mexico College
Mesalands Community College
Central New Mexico Community College

What's good for the environment may turn out to be good for the economy as well. Of course, it will take a healthy investment from the U.S. government but a state-by-state study released by the Center for American Programs predicted that an investment of $600 million in New Mexico could lead to the statewide creation of close to 14,000 new jobs.

New Mexico isn't the only state vying for government funds, but with any luck, there will be enough money to go around to all 50 states. If New Mexico legislators do receive the money they're applying for, $20 million of it will go toward training workers for their new green-collar jobs.

Posted by Candice Arnold on February 3, 2009 at 12:24 PM | Leave a Comment (0)