PRINTER'S NO. 1768
No. 1511 Session of 1995
INTRODUCED BY WOGAN, BATTISTO, GEIST, FARGO, J. TAYLOR, MERRY,
O'BRIEN, WALKO, FICHTER, ALLEN, SCHRODER AND MILLER,
MAY 1, 1995
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, MAY 1, 1995
AN ACT
1 Amending Title 42 (Judiciary and Judicial Procedure) of the
2 Pennsylvania Consolidated Statutes, authorizing immunity for
3 employers who disclose information regarding a former
4 employee's qualifications.
5 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
6 hereby enacts as follows:
7 Section 1. Title 42 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
8 Statutes is amended by adding a section to read:
9 § 8332.6. Employer immunity from liability from disclosure of
10 information regarding former employee's
11 qualifications.
12 (a) Maintenance of blacklist prohibited.--It is unlawful for
13 any employer to maintain a blacklist, to notify any other
14 employer to maintain a blacklist or to notify any other employer
15 that any current or former employee has been blacklisted by the
16 employer for the purpose of preventing the employee from
17 receiving employment. This section shall not prevent a former
18 employer of an employee from imparting a fair and unbiased
1 opinion of the employee's qualifications when solicited so to do
2 by a later or prospective employer of the employee. This section
3 shall not be construed to prevent any merchant or professional
4 person or association of merchants or professionals from
5 maintaining or publishing a list concerning the credit or
6 financial responsibility of a person dealing with them on
7 credit.
8 (b) Immunity for disclosure of information.--Any employer
9 who, upon request by a prospective employer or a current or
10 former employee, provides fair and unbiased information about a
11 current or former employee's job performance as provided in
12 subsection (a) is presumed to be acting in good faith and shall
13 be immune from civil liability for the disclosure and the
14 consequences of the disclosure. The presumption of good faith
15 may be rebutted upon a showing by a preponderance of evidence
16 that the information disclosed was knowingly false, deliberately
17 misleading, disclosed for a malicious purpose or violative of a
18 civil right of the employee.
19 (c) Copy of information.--Any employer who provides written
20 information to a prospective employer about a current or a
21 former employee shall send a copy of the information provided to
22 the last known address of the person who is the subject of the
23 reference. A person who is the subject of a reference may obtain
24 a copy of the reference information by appearing at the
25 employer's or former employer's place of business during normal
26 working hours. The employer or former employer may charge a fair
27 and reasonable amount for reproduction costs if multiple copies
28 are requested.
29 Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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