Texas Sues EEOC to Block Guidance On Criminal Background Checks

Employee Relations

This week, the state of Texas asked a federal district court to declare invalid the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s 2012 enforcement guidance on employers' use of arrest and conviction records.  The state is also seeking to enjoin the agency from using its alleged misinterpretation of Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act to challenge the state's policy of not hiring convicted felons for many state jobs.  The state seeks relief from what it calls the EEOC's incorrect view of Title VII and the agency's litigation strategy of suing employers for broad usage of criminal background screens in the hiring process.  The lawsuit says Congress never granted the EEOC substantive rulemaking power under Title VII and the agency has overstepped its statutory authority.