Class Action: Dollar Tree Fails to Disclose Background Checks

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Last week, a class action lawsuit was filed against Dollar Tree Stores Inc. alleging that the company violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act and Federal Trade Commission rules when it obtained consumer reports about potential employees.

Lead plaintiff Lashay Walker filed the Dollar Tree class action lawsuit in Florida federal court. In it, she claimed that the discount retailer did not properly disclose to jobseekers that it would collect consumer reports about them.

According to the FCRA class action lawsuit, Dollar Tree should have disclosed to jobseekers that it would collect consumer reports using a separate document. The class action lawsuit also alleges that Dollar Tree improperly included a waiver of liability in the application and notices provided, also a violation of the FCRA and FTC regulations.

According to the class action lawsuit, “[Dollar Tree] routinely obtain[s] and use[s] information in consumer reports to conduct background checks on prospective employees and existing employees, and frequently rel[ies] on such information, in whole or in part, as a basis for adverse employment action, such as termination, reduction of hours, change in position, failure to hire, and failure to promote.”

The Dollar Tree class action lawsuit claims, “While the use of consumer report information for employment purposes is not per se unlawful, it is subject to strict disclosure and authorization requirements under the FCRA.”

The plaintiff claims in her background check class action lawsuit that “[Dollar Tree] is required to disclose – in a document that consists solely of the diclosure – that it may obtain a consumer report on them for employment purposes, prior to obtaining a copy of their consumer report.” Additionally, “[Dollar Tree’s] Background Check Disclosure form discloses that [Dollar Tree] intends to conduct a background check and, at the same time, purports to release [Dollar Tree] from any liability related to the background check.”

Walker alleges that she applied with Dollar Tree to work as a cashier. After she began work, Dollar Tree obtained a background check and consumer report about her, she alleges in the class action lawsuit. Walker claims that Dollar Tree acted improperly and those actions “fl[y] in the face of unambiguous case law and regulatory guidance from the FTC,” according to the Dollar Tree class action lawsuit.

Walker seeks to represent a Class of potential employees who allegedly had background checks and consumer reports obtained improperly by Dollar Tree in the past five years. She also seeks statutory and punitive damages against Dollar Tree for violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

This class action lawsuit joins others similar actions based on the Fair Credit Reporting Act, including cases against Michaels Stores Inc. and Whole Foods Market Group Inc. Recently the U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation centralized the case against Michaels, a craft supply retailer.

Walker is represented by Luis A. Cabassa and Brandon J. Hill of Wenzel Fenton Cabassa PA.

The Dollar Tree Background Check Class Action Lawsuit is Lashay Walker v. Dollar Tree Stores Inc., Case No. 8:15-cv-01170, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida.