BILL NUMBER:A11055

TITLE OF BILL:  An act to amend the correction law, in relation to writ-
ten statements upon denial of a license

PURPOSE  OR  GENERAL  IDEA OF BILL:   This bill clarifies an omission in
Article 23A of the correction law that protects applicants with criminal
histories from employment discrimination but does not extend  that  same
protection to individuals at their current place of employment.

This  bill  addresses such omission by applying the same requirements to
employers upon taking adverse action to current employees on  the  basis
of  one  or more criminal convictions that occurred prior to the instant
employment as current law  already  requires  of  employers  in  denying
applicants for employment on the same basis.

SUMMARY  OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:  Section one of the bill amends section
754 of the correction law  to  clarify  that  persons  against  whom  at
adverse  action  is  taken by an employer of licensing agency based on a
prior criminal record have the right to receive written reasons for such
adverse action.

Section two is the effective date.

HISTORY:  In 2007, the Legislature, recognizing that it was inconsistent
to protect applicants with criminal histories from employment  discrimi-
              

nation  but  not  extend  that  same  protection to individuals who ware
already employed, amended §751 of the Correction Law,  so  that  current
employees and license holders with criminal histories, as well as appli-
cants, were protected against unfair discrimination.

Unfortunately, a companion piece to that section of the law, §754 of the
Correction  Law,  which also only pertains to applicants for employment,
was not amended at the same time to extend its applicability to  current
employees.

As  currently  written,  §754  requires  employers who deny a license to
employment to people with criminal histories to write a statement,  upon
request,  explaining the reasons for the denial. In order to ensure that
the protections of the Correction Law are consistent, this bill  extends
to current employees the same protection.

JUSTIFICATION:  The  requirement  of  §751  of  the  Correction Law that
employers, upon request, provide a written statement setting  forth  the
reasons  why  they  denied  a  person  with  a  criminal record a job or
license, has proven very helpful in facilitating the gainful  employment
of  individuals  with  criminal  histories.  For example, in some cases,
employers have relied on background checks that contain erroneous infor-
mation. When apprised of that fact, applicants have the  opportunity  to
correct  those inaccuracies so that they can more easily find employment
in the future. In other cases employers occasionally are unfamiliar with
New York's law that prohibits discrimination based on criminal  history.

When  they  receive  a request under §754 for an explanation of why they
denied a person with a criminal history a job or  license,  they  become
acquainted with New York's anti-discrimination law and sometimes reverse
their decision.

Current  employees  should  have the same opportunities as applicants to
determine the reason for an employer's adverse action against them.   By
extending §754's protection, current employees will have a better chance
to remain productive, tax-paying, and law-abiding citizens.  Section 754
of  the  Correction  Law  is  an  important tool in promoting New York's
strong, longstanding policy of encouraging the employment  of  qualified
individuals  with  criminal  records  and  should be extended to current
employees.

LEGISLATIVE HISTORY: New bill.

FISCAL IMPLICATIONS: None

EFFECTIVE DATE: Immediate.