Bed Bath and Beyond Agrees to Stop Automatically Disqualifying Job Applicants with a Criminal History

Date:  05-07-2014 Retailer’s $125,000 settlement with New York includes $40,000 to job seekers unlawfully rejected due to past criminal convictions

On April 20, 2014 Bloomberg Businessweek reported: Bed Bath & Beyond Inc. agreed to stop automatically rejecting job applicants with criminal records and to evaluate individual situations as New York’s attorney general expanded a crackdown on discrimination against ex-offenders. Under New York law, employers are barred from disqualifying any prospective hire simply on the basis of a criminal history. Such blanket discrimination is illegal in several states and cities and may also violate federal civil rights law, according to the New York-based National Employment Law Project. A company can still look at the nature of a past crime and the responsibilities of a particular job in considering an applicant. The household goods retailer, which operates more than 1,400 stores across the U.S. with 62 in New York, will pay a $125,000 in the settlement, including $40,000 in restitution to applicants unlawfully denied jobs, Attorney General Eric Schneiderman’s office said. Read the full Bloomber Businessweek report here.