New York City amends Fair Chance Act

New York City Council has amended the Fair Chance Act (FCA) that prohibits inquiring into the criminal records of job applicants until after a conditional job offer. Effective in July of 2021, an employer can only revoke an offer based on one of three factors:

• The results of a criminal background check after the FCA process has been followed,
• The results of a medical exam permitted by the American with Disabilities Act (ADA), or
• Other information [that] the employer could not have reasonably known before making the conditional offer if the employer can show as an affirmative defense that, based on the information, it would not have made the offer regardless of the results of the criminal background check.

The amendments extend employment protections for individuals with pending criminal cases by requiring the employer to conduct an assessment of the relationship between the offense and the prospective job.