Assembly Concurs With Gov’s
Conditional Veto Recommendations
(TRENTON) – The full Assembly on
Monday unanimously approved legislation sponsored by Assemblymen John
Burzichelli, Louis Greenwald, Ruben Ramos, Jr., Herb Conaway, Jr., M.D. and
Marlene Caride that would bar employers and colleges from requiring current or
prospective employees or students to turn over their login information for
social networking websites as a condition of employment or
acceptance.
The bill
now incorporates several changes made by Gov. Christie in his conditional veto
issued earlier this month while still maintaining protections for current and
prospective employees.
“In this
job market, especially, employers clearly have the upper hand. Demanding this
information is akin to coercion when it might mean the difference between
landing a job and not being able to put food on the table for your family,” said
Burzichelli (D- Cumberland/Gloucester/Salem). “This is a huge invasion of
privacy that takes ‘Big Brother’ to a whole new level. It’s really no different
than asking someone to turn over a key to their house. I think the changes we
approved today are sensible while maintaining the original intent of the bill.”
The
legislation initially came amidst a rash of reports that private businesses and
higher education institutions are demanding Facebook login information from job
applicants. The lawmakers also sponsored a companion bill (A-2879) that became
law in December, which now bars colleges and universities from doing the
same.
The
sponsors noted that the rise of social networking sites has made it more
commonplace for employers to review publicly available Facebook profiles,
Twitter accounts and other such sites, however they questioned the legality of
demanding login information from applicants.
“This
practice is highly invasive and also begs the question of where do you draw the
line,” said Greenwald (D-Camden/Burlington). “If an employer or college claims
they’re trying to gain a perspective on the applicant’s life, what’s to stop
them from trying to require the login information for a spouse or parent? With
the economy still struggling to gain traction, most people don’t have the luxury
of standing up to a prospective employer and denying this type of request.”
The
measure (A-2878) that has been reapproved will prohibit an employer from
requiring a current or prospective employee to provide or disclose any user
name, password, or other means for accessing a personal account or service
through an electronic communications device. However, the bill was amended to
strike the clause prohibiting employers from asking a current or prospective
employee if they have a personal account or profile on a social networking
website.
“If we
don’t draw this line in the sand now, who knows how far this invasion of privacy
might be taken,” said Ramos (D-Hudson). “In an economy where employers clearly
have the upper hand, we need to protect the rights of job seekers from being
trampled.”
Violations of the provisions of the
bill would carry civil penalties up to $1,000 for the first violation and $2,500
for each subsequent violation.
“Sometimes there’s a fine line
between thoroughly vetting a prospective employee and invading their privacy,”
said Conaway (D-Burlington). “The rapid advancement of technology creates a
slippery slope that these bills aim to temper.”
The bill
would also prohibit an employer from requiring a prospective employee or
applicant to waive or limit any protection granted under the bill as a condition
of applying for or receiving an offer of employment. The bill would also protect employees who report an alleged
violation to the Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development.
“Employers have managed to interview
and hire quality employees for years without having to resort to this extra
layer of scrutiny,” said Caride (D-Bergen/Passaic). “There’s no reason they
can’t continue to do so without invading a person’s privacy in such a
way.”
Changes made to the
bill on Monday would also permit an employer to view, access and utilize any
information about an employee/prospective employee that can be obtained in the
public domain.
The
measure now heads to the Senate for final concurrence before heading back to the
Governor’s desk.
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