Swift Transportation Faces Lawsuit Over Background Checks
Swift Transportation is facing a class action lawsuit for allegedly violating the Fair Credit Reporting Act in how it conducted background checks. The suit says more than 10,000 applicants were affected.
Photo: Evan Lockridge
The carrier Swift Transportation is back under the legal microscope with a class action lawsuit being filed against it in a Virginia federal court.
Photo: Evan Lockridge
It claims the company failed to tell more than 10,000 people who applied for jobs they can access the same information as the company for background checks and question the information the company reviews in making hiring decisions.
The plaintiff is James Ellis III. He applied to be a Swift driver in 2012 but was turned away due to his background check.
It’s claimed Swift has violated the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act for several years by not informing Ellis and other driver applicants they had a right to get a free copy of the report used by Swift and could dispute any information on it
The lawsuit is the second one filed against Swift that makes similar allegations. In 2011 a class action was filed in federal court in Arizona by three applicants who also made the same charges as Ellis. The case was later dismissed.
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Read more about background checks and the FCRA -- Safety&Compliance: Beware these background screening pitfalls
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