City of Des Moines, IA Bans the Box December 2021

Special Announcement to all City of Des Moines, Iowa employers :

 On November 11, 2021, the Des Moines City Council passed ordinance number 16,083. This law will restrict employers in the city from asking about or searching for criminal record information. The law will take effect on 12/03/2021.

Under the law, the following restrictions will apply:

Sec. 62-71.1. Criminal record inquiry for employment purposes.
(a) In connection with the proposed employment of any person, it shall be an illegal
discriminatory employment practice for an employer to include a criminal record inquiry
on any application for employment. It shall further be an illegal discriminatory employment practice for an employer, but not private schools providing a regular course of instruction for any part of kindergarten through high school education, to engage in any of the following activity:

(1) To make any inquiry regarding or to require any person to disclose or reveal any
convictions, arrests, or pending criminal charges during the application process,
including but not limited to any interview. However, if the applicant voluntarily
discloses any information regarding the applicant’s criminal record at the interview,
the employer may discuss the criminal record disclosed by the applicant.
The application process shall begin when the applicant inquiries about the employment
being sought and shall end when an employer has extended a conditional offer of
employment to the applicant.

(b) Employers shall comply with any obligations arising under federal or state law relating to authorization for background checks, notifying applicants about adverse hiring decisions based on an applicant’s criminal history, and any other matters involving use of criminal record information.

The full text of this ordinance is available here: Ordinance Number 16,083 

This law will require a review of the hiring process in place and may require changes to that process. Justifacts recommends that you consult with your legal department to determine what changes, if any, need to be made to your hiring process in order to comply with this law.