Assemblyman Dinowitz on the Need to Ban Credit Checks for Hiring Decisions

“As the author of the Credit Privacy in Employment Act, I am glad that the New York City Council is considering similar legislation that would prevent employers from evaluating an applicant’s personal credit history for hiring decisions in New York City. A person’s credit history does not reflect his or her past job performance or qualifications, yet it currently can be used to reject otherwise qualified applicants for a job. More often than not, women, students, and people of color are adversely affected by these credit checks.

“This unfair and discriminatory practice must end. While the Credit Privacy in Employment Act has passed in the Assembly in previous years, a companion bill has not yet passed in the Senate. I intend to introduce this legislation in the Assembly at the beginning of the next legislative session, and I look forward to working with the governor and the Senate to ensure that New Yorkers applying for jobs are considered for them on their merits alone.”