NYC Council Set to Pass Strongest Such Legislation in Country
Coalition Commends Mayor & City Council for Vital Civil Rights Legislation
April 13, 2015 – The NYC Coalition to Stop Credit Checks in Employment commends New York City for taking action to end employment credit checks. This week, the City Council is expected to pass, with an overwhelming majority, the Stop Credit Discrimination in Employment Act (Intro 261), introduced by Council Member Brad Lander and co- sponsored by 41 members of the Council and the NYC Public Advocate. Intro 261 will be the strongest law of its kind in the country, banning employers in NYC from requesting or using someone’s personal credit history for hiring, promotion, or job-retention decisions.
Our coalition of 79 community, labor, civil rights and student organizations fought for a ban on employment credit checks, to remove an unjustified, discriminatory barrier to jobs. Employment credit checks block qualified workers from desperately-needed jobs — including people whose credit was damaged as a result of medical debts, divorce, layoffs or other life events beyond their control. Employment credit checks discriminate against low-income New Yorkers and people of color, who have been disproportionately affected by predatory lending and the economic downturn. New York City’s passage of this legislation will advance civil rights and economic opportunity for all in our city.
Intro 261 exempts certain limited categories of jobs from the prohibition on use of credit checks. The legislation requires the Human Rights Commission to issue a report after two years, analyzing whether these exemptions create unfair barriers to jobs.
The Coalition looks forward to continuing to work with the City to ensure effective implementation and enforcement of this vital civil rights law.
For Inquiries:
New Economy Project: Sarah Ludwig, 212-680-5100 x207, sarah@neweconomynyc.org
DC37: Robert Martin, 212-815-1810, Rmartin@dc37.net
Demos: Nikki Cannon, 212-485-6012, ncannon@demos.org
MFY: Evan Denerstein, 212-417-3760, edenerstein@mfy.org
NYPIRG: Armando Chapelliquen, 973-934-8485, achapelliquen@nypirg.org
RWDSU/RAP: Janna Pea, 212-684-5300, jpea@rwdsu.org
