Daily News: City Will Ban Employers from Viewing Credit History of Prospective Workers

[Read Original]

New York Daily News

By Jennifer Fermino

The City Council is expected to pass a bill Thursday that will make it illegal for employers to check job-seekers’ credit history, officials told the Daily News.

In addition to banning credit reports on a prospective employee, the bill also prohibits employers from asking people what their credit score is in job interviews.

“There’s just no demonstrated correlation between credit history and job performance, or the likelihood to commit fraud or theft,” said the bill’s sponsor, City Councilman Brad Lander (D-Brooklyn).

It was drafted after advocates for low-income New Yorkers trying to help people find employment noticed that many were complaining about being denied for poor credit.

“You’re in a vicious cycle,” said Sarah Ludwig, the founder of New Economy Project, a nonprofit that worked to get the bill passed. “You can’t get a job to pay your debt, but you can’t pay your debts because you don’t have a job.”

Lander said it was decided to exempt only a handful of employers — like law enforcement and positions that could pose cybersecurity threats.