If you want to apply for a job working for The City ofBozeman, Montana, be prepared. You’ll have to list your login information and passwords for any social network websites on which you are a member.
The job application includes a standard background check, searching for criminal history, employment & education verifications as well as driving records. It also states:
“Please list any and all, current personal or business websites, web pages or memberships on any internet-based chat rooms, social clubs or forums, to include, but not limited to: Facebook, Google, Yahoo, YouTube.com, MySpace, etc.”
Bozeman City Attorney, Greg Sullivan, was quoted as saying, “…We do those types of investigations to make sure the people that we hire have the highest moral character and are a good fit for the City.”
While employers are encouraged to conduct thorough background checks utilizing social networking sites to screen applicants is normally not advised. Employers can find themselves in legal liability because many sites reveal a job applicant’s race, gender, religion, sexual preference and age – all items that are not legal to take into account during the hiring process.
In Article 2, Section 10 of the Montana Constitution, it says “the right of individual privacy is essential to the well-being of a free society and shall not be infringed without the showing of a compelling state interest.”
Would you apply for a job with Bozeman, Montana or do you think they are limiting their number of applicants because of this issue?
Tags: background checks, personal information, social networking
