Privacy Issues in the Community College Workplace

4. C RIMINAL R ECORDS AN E MPLOYER M AY O BTAIN The California Penal Code permits public agencies to obtain criminal history information from the Department of Justice. Penal Code section 11105 requires the Department of Justice to maintain the following information about individuals with criminal records:

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Name,

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Date of birth,

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Physical description,

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Fingerprints,

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Photographs,

 Dates of arrest and arresting agencies,

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Booking numbers,

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Charges, and

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Dispositions.

This section permits the Department of Justice to release (subject to the restrictions of Labor Code section 432.7, Penal Code section 11105.3, and Public Resources Code section 5164) this information to any local public agency if the agency’s governing body authorizes its management staff to obtain criminal background data in the employment application process. Prospective employers should specifically request that the Department of Justice only provide information about convictions, or arrests pending adjudication. Once the employer obtains an applicant’s criminal record, it must determine whether it will hire the individual or withdraw a conditional offer of employment. An employer should not automatically disqualify applicants with criminal records. Rejecting all applicants with criminal records might disproportionately impact individuals within a protected class and lead to a disparate impact race discrimination lawsuit against the agency. The agency should therefore consider all of the circumstances related to the conviction and whether it has any relationship to the job. The following factors should be given consideration:

 Nature and seriousness of the offense

 Circumstances related to the conviction

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Repeat offenses

 Relationship between the job and the conviction

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Length of time since last conviction

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Age at the time of conviction

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Evidence of rehabilitation

Privacy Issues in the Community College Workplace ©2019 (c) Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 35