5 ms·

"Does it matter if person folding your laundry got into a drunken fight when they were 19? Not really." No. It doesn't. Does it matter if a person with a hist

by timjahn 12y ago

"Does it matter if person folding your laundry got into a drunken fight when they were 19? Not really." No. It doesn't. Does it matter if a person with a history of DUIs (or even ONE) drives me for Lyft? Yes. Does it matter if a person with a history of armed robbery or home invasion delivers groceries to my house for Instacart? Yes.

phillmv 12y ago
Surely, your emotional reaction depends on how long ago the DUI was. What if they had ONE DUI ten years ago? Armed robbery and home invasion are very different crimes. Just because they held up a liquor store doesn't mean they're going to rob you while you sit in the backseat of their car, with their picture and full identity flashing on your phone. And home invasions are crimes of opportunity. I'm not sure I think that background discrimination is always wrong. Just that it's grossly overused, and there is no room for discretion - especially considering how many people get bullshit charges in the US. Does a DUI disqualify you from being a good programmer, or a well respected project manager? I'm not sure that it does. Maybe you're an asshole, or maybe you did something stupid while undergoing your divorce. It's especially egregious to start barring people from the bottom-of-the-barrel gigs as well. At that rate, you might as well never release them from prison to begin with.
- tehwebguy 12y ago
  > Surely, your emotional reaction depends on how long ago the DUI was. What if they had ONE DUI ten years ago? Yeah, DUI should disqualify you from ever driving professionally IMO. Anecdotal, sure, but my experience is that people who actually have a DUI are the ones that finally got caught after years. Then again, the well to do people I know (or ones with a well to do family) with a DUI actually got their charge reduced to reckless driving by fighting it in court, so maybe there are as many false negatives as positives.
  - hueving 12y ago
    >Yeah, DUI should disqualify you from ever driving professionally IMO. Anecdotal, sure, but my experience is that people who actually have a DUI are the ones that finally got caught after years. What you are implying is that once someone drives drunk they will never stop. If that's the case, they should be stripped of their license completely. It doesn't make sense to stop half way and say they can keep driving themselves but can't drive professionally. Both scenarios put many people at risk.
the_ancient 12y ago
Why? Are they Drunk when they pick you up? If not why does not matter if they were drunk 5 years ago, or 1 day ago, they are not drunk at the moment so that is all that should concern you. I see you have a huge amount of faith in the legal system... That is sad
- dyanisse 12y ago
  Hi, I am the cofounder and I want to jump in. The Fair Credit Reporting Act regulates the background screening industry and gives rights to consumers. We cannot disclose offenses older than 7 years old. https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0096-fair-credit-reporting-act.pdf https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0096-fair-credit-r...
  - maresca 12y ago
    I see nothing in there having to do with criminal charges. Only credit and financial records. Am I missing something?
    - the_ancient 12y ago
      No you are not. FCRA has nothing at all do to with criminal records and what is disclosed by the courts for a criminal background check which is often for life. I know people that are in their mid 40's that are still denied employment because of drug possession charges then incurred in their teens.
    - dyanisse 12y ago
      Yes the FCRA regulates consumer reports and background checks are consumer reports even if they are not mentioned in the text. https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0157-employment-background-checks https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0157-employment-backgr... Please speak to a lawyer before making false statements.
      - the_ancient 12y ago
        Actually it appears we are both right. Companies such as yours are prohibited from disclosing it because you are classified as "consumer reporting agency" however the disclosure of criminal records by non-consumer reporting agencies is not limited to 7 years.
maratd 12y ago
While your points are valid, this is an automated solution. We can sit here and debate this, but software doesn't debate anything. There will be one conditional statement. If criminal at any point in time, deny. That's it. The overwhelming majority of those utilizing such services do not have the depth or foresight to distinguish between various offenses nor the time periods involved.

by timjahn 12y ago

phillmv 12y ago

Surely, your emotional reaction depends on how long ago the DUI was. What if they had ONE DUI ten years ago? Armed robbery and home invasion are very different crimes. Just because they held up a liquor store doesn't mean they're going to rob you while you sit in the backseat of their car, with their picture and full identity flashing on your phone. And home invasions are crimes of opportunity. I'm not sure I think that background discrimination is always wrong. Just that it's grossly overused, and there is no room for discretion - especially considering how many people get bullshit charges in the US. Does a DUI disqualify you from being a good programmer, or a well respected project manager? I'm not sure that it does. Maybe you're an asshole, or maybe you did something stupid while undergoing your divorce. It's especially egregious to start barring people from the bottom-of-the-barrel gigs as well. At that rate, you might as well never release them from prison to begin with.

tehwebguy 12y ago
> Surely, your emotional reaction depends on how long ago the DUI was. What if they had ONE DUI ten years ago? Yeah, DUI should disqualify you from ever driving professionally IMO. Anecdotal, sure, but my experience is that people who actually have a DUI are the ones that finally got caught after years. Then again, the well to do people I know (or ones with a well to do family) with a DUI actually got their charge reduced to reckless driving by fighting it in court, so maybe there are as many false negatives as positives.
- hueving 12y ago
  >Yeah, DUI should disqualify you from ever driving professionally IMO. Anecdotal, sure, but my experience is that people who actually have a DUI are the ones that finally got caught after years. What you are implying is that once someone drives drunk they will never stop. If that's the case, they should be stripped of their license completely. It doesn't make sense to stop half way and say they can keep driving themselves but can't drive professionally. Both scenarios put many people at risk.

the_ancient 12y ago

Why? Are they Drunk when they pick you up? If not why does not matter if they were drunk 5 years ago, or 1 day ago, they are not drunk at the moment so that is all that should concern you. I see you have a huge amount of faith in the legal system... That is sad

dyanisse 12y ago
Hi, I am the cofounder and I want to jump in. The Fair Credit Reporting Act regulates the background screening industry and gives rights to consumers. We cannot disclose offenses older than 7 years old. https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0096-fair-credit-reporting-act.pdf https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-0096-fair-credit-r...
- maresca 12y ago
  I see nothing in there having to do with criminal charges. Only credit and financial records. Am I missing something?
  - the_ancient 12y ago
    No you are not. FCRA has nothing at all do to with criminal records and what is disclosed by the courts for a criminal background check which is often for life. I know people that are in their mid 40's that are still denied employment because of drug possession charges then incurred in their teens.
  - dyanisse 12y ago
    Yes the FCRA regulates consumer reports and background checks are consumer reports even if they are not mentioned in the text. https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0157-employment-background-checks https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0157-employment-backgr... Please speak to a lawyer before making false statements.
    - the_ancient 12y ago
      Actually it appears we are both right. Companies such as yours are prohibited from disclosing it because you are classified as "consumer reporting agency" however the disclosure of criminal records by non-consumer reporting agencies is not limited to 7 years.

maratd 12y ago

While your points are valid, this is an automated solution. We can sit here and debate this, but software doesn't debate anything. There will be one conditional statement. If criminal at any point in time, deny. That's it. The overwhelming majority of those utilizing such services do not have the depth or foresight to distinguish between various offenses nor the time periods involved.