EEOC Chair Grilled on Employer Guidance
The Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Workplace Protections questioned the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission's guidance on employer use of criminal background checks Wednesday. Representative Tim Walberg (R-MI) asked EEOC Chair Jacqueline Berrien "is it in the best interests of workers and employers when the commission pursues regulatory policies that may make workplaces less safe?"
The subcommittee called the EEOC Chair to explain recent policies of the Commission, including the criminal guidance. Commissioner Berrien responded that the guidance does not prohibit employers from reviewing criminal histories, but requires that they be shown to be relevant to the job.
The toughest questioning was done by Representative Susan Brooks (R-IN) who criticized the EEOC's decision not to provide the public an opportunity to comment on the employer guidance. Rep. Brooks also pointed out that the guidance created a conflict between federal and state law because many states require some employers to review criminal histories. Chair Berrien acknowledged the conflict and said the EEOC would consider state law when deciding which cases to pursue.
Subcommittee Chairman Walberg said there would be further hearings regarding EEOC policy. Berrien was the only witness Wednesday.
In other news, Representative Rod Frelinghuysen (R-NJ) has reintroduced legislation to restrict the sale and display of Social Security numbers. For several years he has introduced legislation similar or identical to the legislation offered by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) which does exempt the sale of such information in "business to business" transactions.
Larry Sabbath