Ninth Circuit: FCRA Disclosure Notice to Employees Must Stand Alone
APPLIES TO All Employers with AK, AZ, CA, HI, ID, MT, NV, OR, WA, Guam, and Northern Mariana Islands Employees |
EFFECTIVE January 29, 2019 |
QUESTIONS? Contact HR On-Call |
In Gilberg v. Cal. Check Cashing Stores, the Ninth Circuit stated that the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) prohibits including “extraneous” information with the required notice of rights, including legal rights individuals have under state fair credit reporting laws. The FCRA applies to employers who obtain background or credit reports on applicants and employees in the employment context. Specifically, the FCRA requires employers to provide the individual with a disclosure of their right to obtain a copy of the report, and obtain written authorization before obtaining the reports. Although the authorization may be on the same page as the disclosure, no other information may be present. Additionally, because the California Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act (ICRAA) mirrors the FCRA, the same segregation requirements apply to California-required disclosures.