Did you know that according to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), the government views volunteer personnel as unpaid employees? Organizations are often unaware of this information; as a result, they overlook very important measures to complete the screening process correctly. The majority of these FCRA requirements begin to surface in the event that a candidate for an employment or volunteer position is found to be unqualified (specifically with regards to the information in the candidate’s consumer report). The task of informing an individual that he/she is being denied the position of employment or volunteering can be difficult, even without the complications of legal documentation. Therefore, Protect My Ministry has developed resources to assist you in this process.
Before You Take Adverse Action
Before you reject a job application, reassign or terminate an employee, deny a promotion, or take any other adverse employment action based on information in a consumer report, you must give the applicant or employee the following:
- a notice that includes a copy of the consumer report on which you relied to make your decision
- a copy of A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which should have been provided to you by the company that reported the information.
Giving the person the notice in advance gives him/her the opportunity to review the report and tell you if the information reported is correct.
After You Take Adverse Action
If you take adverse action based on information in a consumer report, you must give the applicant or employee a notice of that fact – orally, in writing, or electronically.
An adverse action notice tells people about their rights to see information being reported about them and to correct inaccurate information. The notice must include the following:
- the name, address, and phone number of the consumer reporting company that supplied the report
- a statement that the company that supplied the report did not make the decision to take the unfavorable action and cannot give specific reasons for it
- a notice of the person’s right to dispute the accuracy or completeness of any information the consumer reporting company furnished, and to get an additional free report from the company if the person requests it within 60 days of completion.
Protect My Ministry is the creditable source for any of your background screening needs. If you need more information regarding FRCA compliance or taking adverse action, please review the documents below or contact our client services.