Rochester, NY Passes "Ban the Box" for All Private Employers

On May 22, 2014, the City of Rochester, NY, became the 11th U.S. jurisdiction to "ban the box" by passing legislation restricting private employers from inquiring into the criminal history of job applicants.  Rochester, NY joins other states/cities as follows:   Buffalo, N.Y., Newark, N.J., Philadelphia, PA, Seattle, WA, and San Francisco, CA, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Rhode Island.

The Rochester law forbids inquiries into criminal history before an employer makes a conditional offer of employment. Rochester's law goes into effect on November 18, 2014 and applies to all employers with 4 or more full time employees.

Other Items from this law: This law prohibits employers from inquiring into or asking job applicants to disclose their criminal convictions before the first interview. Different from some of the other "Ban the Box" ordinances, this law also prohibits questions about convictions during the interview. Exceptions would include, employers required by licensing authorities, or state or federal law, as well as law enforcement applicants. 

Employers in Rochester cannot inquire into certain classes of convictions, including juvenile offenses and sealed and expunged convictions. In addition employers must comply with NY State Correction Law Article 23-A which prohibits employers from taking an adverse action against a job applicant based on a criminal offense unless the offense has a direct relationship to the job. In determining whether there is such a direct relationship, employers must consider the following factors: 

• The specific duties of the job;
• The bearing of any criminal offense on the ability perform these duties;
• The time that has elapsed since any criminal offenses;
• The job applicant's age at the time of any criminal offenses;
• The seriousness of criminal offenses;
• The public policies favoring the employment of ex-convicts;
• Rehabilitation and good conduct; and
• The legitimate interest of the employer in protecting property, and the safety and welfare of specific individuals or the general public.  

Aurico recommends that employers review their applications for the criminal question and determine if they have operations in Rochester, NY and other cities/states that would be impacted.  Aurico also recommends that employers review their policies with their legal counsel on a regular basis.

Please contact Aurico for further information.