Job Applicant Alleges A+ Student Staffing, ETC Institute ‘Robbed’ Him of His Rights Under FCRA

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A proposed class action filed against A+ Student Staffing, Inc. and ETC Institute claims the companies failed to properly disclose to a job applicant that a background check would be run and took adverse action against him without following procedures set forth by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

According to the lawsuit, market research firm ETC Institute contracted with co-defendant A+ Student Staffing to staff a short-term project. The suit claims that the plaintiff applied for a surveyor position with the defendants and that the position was contingent on a background check. 

The complaint alleges, however, that the defendants failed to give the plaintiff a stand-alone disclosure form regarding their intent to perform a background check, as required by the FCRA. The suit claims that, instead, the plaintiff signed an “online authorization” for a background check that also contained “impermissible language” and “extraneous information.” 

The plaintiff was ultimately denied employment, the suit continues, after his report identified multiple dismissed criminal charges. According to the suit, however, the defendants never gave the plaintiff a copy of his report or a notice of their intent to take “adverse action” against him. Prospective employers, the complaint explains, “must provide to the consumer a copy of the report and disclosure of rights a sufficient amount of time before it takes adverse action so that the consumer can rectify any inaccuracies in the report.” 

The suit argues that the “defective disclosure” rendered the background check an illegal invasion of the plaintiff’s privacy. Moreover, the defendants violated the plaintiff’s rights by failing to comply with FCRA-mandated procedures before denying him employment based on the findings of the background report, the case says.