Workforce Bulletin

Massachusetts employers should take note of a provision in the Massachusetts criminal justice reform law – signed into law last week – that amends the type and scope of questions an employer may ask an applicant about his or her criminal history following an “initial written employment application.”

Since 2010, Massachusetts has prohibited public and private employers from requesting criminal record information in a prospective employee’s “initial written employment application” (commonly known as a “ban the box” provision). Following receipt of an ...