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Posted on 04/14/2026 10:00:18 AM PDT by AbolishCSEU
ROCHESTER, N.Y. — Starting this Saturday, employers in New York State can no longer use credit history in the hiring process. The governor signed the bill into law in December. It takes effect statewide on April 18, 2026. New York City passed its own credit check ban in September.
The bill also applies to an employer’s decision to fire or promote a current employee. A person’s credit history might affect a lot of other areas like renting or buying a home, but it will no longer have an impact on their ability to get a job.
There are some exceptions to the rule. Employers can check credit history if the position requires security clearance or is in law enforcement, the position involves financial authority to enter the employer into agreements more than $10,000, and positions with regular access to trade secrets.
Outside these specific circumstances, it’s now considered discrimination to use someone’s credit history against them when hiring. Dave Seeley is the executive director of RochesterWorks and explained why this matters.
“People face profound barriers to employment. In some cases, a bad credit score is the reason why they can’t get a lease on a home or a car loan. And that makes it less likely they’re going to have success in sustaining employment,” Seeley said.
“I think the people advocating for this law understand that certain people in our society are more likely to have a bad credit score. People who are probably more likely to be persons of color, also people who were born into poverty. I think there’s a higher correspondence to that,” Seeley said. Seeley said while credit scores aren’t typically the top barrier to securing a job — like criminal history or substance use — this law can only help employees. Bad credit can affect someone’s ability to find housing, afford insurance and ask for loans in the future, but in order to fix credit, a person needs an income.
Seeley said this law will also force employers to take a more holistic approach to the hiring process, focusing more on merit and skills when viewing an applicant’s resume.
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They used to run a credit report and a background check on people working for our bank.
You really did not want someone in deep debt with a criminal record handling thousands of dollars every day.
I never thought anything about it. To me, it was common sense.
Great advice in many cases; but very simplistic in others. Serious illness and medical bills can destroy the best credit very quickly.
Your bank statements please.
As usual, it sounds like a sledge hammer to a nail problem.
On the one hand, I do agree that a bad credit score shouldn’t preclude you from finding employment, say, working at a factory or some skilled manual-labor job, and perhaps even some white-collar professions (software development, graphics design, copywriting, etc.).
However, I also believe that if the job you’re applying for touches money in any way (i.e., a job in the financial sector, any decision-making position where money is spent and/or managed, etc.), then yes, your personal credit score should factor into that because it’s a good indicator of how well you manage money in general. If your personal financial house is out of whack, there’s a fair good chance a business isn’t going to trust you all that much with their own finances.
Would I want a junior programmer under me if he’s got a credit score <= 580? Doesn’t matter. What he does with his own money is his own business.
Would I want a senior VP of marketing with a credit score <= 580? Absolutely not!
Yo, that be raciss, yo.
We came close to having med expenses excluded from impacting credit ratings. Sounds good but the 10% a-holes would have abused the crap out of it no doubt.
Sounds like New Yawk is trying to get more criminals elected.
I’ll follow up my other comment with an addendum to this one: If you’ve got someone applying to a job and they’ve got a low credit score, and it’s a position that touches money? I wouldn’t automatically dismiss them out of hand. Let’s at least hear the story about it, and if there’s a good reason for it (maybe they had a good credit score and then a family member’s illness that resulted in nuking their credit score into oblivion). Sometimes there are factors beyond personal control, and the goal for the job is to help them climb out of the hole.
I guess my point is there’s always room to be reasonable in these situations. Smart and prudent, yes, but reasonable.
That’s fine with me (depending on the job). I don’t like big business prying into your private life anymore than I like big government.
Except that they no longer count medical debt against you
You lack home equity.
As a landlord, the best tenants have the highest credit ratings and pay their rent on time, generally speaking. 96% of the applicants don’t have a credit score over 550. Sad state of affairs.
**** Hoboken
now hiring
Now ban potential employers and government from examining your social media accounts
How about people who lost their businesses or jobs due to Covid? A lot of people had to use credit to survive that and are still digging out.
Its “freedom of speech” issue.
Next they will use the idea behind that measure to say employers cannot get a criminal background check on a prospective employee.
It should not be a legal issue, period. Its a choice any employer should be allowed to make, or chose not to make.
On the other hand, and keeping in mind, obtaining bad credit can create a stream of conditions that do not help getting out of the bad credit. Even when creditors offer a settlement where they accept less than the total owed, the debtor is hit the following April with a 1099 for the difference, creating a new liability - income tax owed on the amount of the debt forgiven. If they are then also out of work, they are without the funds to pay the IRS on the tax on “income” they did not expect. Their hole expands.
I can understand the “charity” behind the law, but I still believe the law should not prohibit prospective employers from doing credit checks, or any other kind of background check. But I do think employers should also ask the prospective employee for explanations AND THEN consider the impact on the hiring situation. Every situation is mot the same. For instance giant medical bills can cause someone to get behind on other forms of debt - because getting further medical treatment could be the priority.
Same as when I was in the casino industry. Always common sense.
“96% of the applicants don’t have a credit score over 550. Sad state of affairs.”
wow, that is crazy. I have looked at probably over 10k credit reports when I was chasing debtors for amex and the 500s were rare. (granted amex back then were charge cards, and it was probably before their credit tanked)
Back then you could not get any kind of loan except Auto from a predatory lender if your score was under 620.
What demographic tries to rent your properties ?
lol what coild go wrong😎😂🤮
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