DCYF Background Checks

In another victory for workplace privacy, the Senate also took no action on a House bill that would have given DCYF and licensed day care agencies direct access to job applicants’ entire criminal history. Presently, applicants apply for a criminal background check with the police, who compare any criminal record with a specified list of disqualifying offenses; only if such an offense is found is the employer notified that the person has a criminal record. The legislation eliminated this carefully-crafted process and would have given day care agencies carte blanche authority to deny employment to people with any criminal record, including applicants with only arrest records. The state Commission for Human Rights joined the ACLU in lobbying against the bill.