Q&A about criminal convictions

Mike Zinser

Question: On an employer’s job application, may the employer ask whether the applicant has ever been convicted of a crime?

Answer: As a general rule, the answer is, “Yes.” However, many states and localities are enacting laws prohibiting employers from asking the criminal conviction question. The good news for SNPA territory is that, at this point, no such laws have been passed.

The EEOC, under the Obama administration, has been attempting to prove that such a question is discriminatory. Thus far, the EEOC has not only lost these cases, but has been strongly rebuked by the federal courts.

Note: Nothing in this SNPA Legal Hotline Q&A should be relied upon as legal advice in any particular matter.

L. Michael Zinser is the founding partner of The Zinser Law Firm in Nashville, Tenn. The firm, which has a heavy concentration of clients in communications media, represents management in the area of labor and employment. Zinser can be reached at (615) 244-9700 or mzinser@zinserlaw.com.

SNPA's free Legal Hotline for members – (844) 804-2016 – is designed to assist newspapers with a broad range of legal issues. Hotline attorneys and CPAs will tackle questions about circulation, independent contractors, labor and employment law, taxes, finances and accounting, employment benefits, open records, libel and privacy, and other issues newspapers encounter.

The attorneys and CPAs who will take calls from SNPA member newspapers are the best in the business:  The Bussian Law Firm PLLC, Fisher & Phillips, Way, Ray, Shelton & Co., P.C. and The Zinser Law Firm.