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CFPB is Making it Harder to Hire and Train Employees

Sunday, 31 July 2022 13:29
Written by Bill Hulse
Category: Uncategorised

The U.S. economy has lost millions of workers since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. According to the U.S. Chamber’s America Works Data Center, there are upwards of 3.25 million missing workers in the economy today. As U.S. Chamber Chief Economist Curtis Dubay explains, this worker shortage is a crisis for both businesses and consumers as unfilled labor needs are driving inflation. Given that, it’s all the more concerning that federal regulators at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) are making it more difficult for businesses to hire employees.

On June 9, 2022, the CFPB published a request for information (RFI) regarding what the agency refers to as “employer driven debt.” While it sounds innocuous, the RFI is targeted at common business practices that expand hiring opportunities and provide employees with in-demand skills. Frequently, when companies hire new employees, they provide them with the opportunity to undertake training or certification courses. In return, employees will often agree to stay with the company for a limited amount of time or otherwise assume the burden for their repayment.

For example, a warehousing company short on truckers may offer employees commercial drivers licensing certification courses in exchange for a contractual obligation from the employee to remain with the company for one year. It’s advantageous for both parties. The employee receives training that typically costs between $3,000 and $10,000 dollars to obtain an in-demand transferable skill, while the employer benefits from investing in their employee and advancing the company. If the employee leaves before a predetermined period of time, however, he or she may be responsible for paying the employer for at least part of the training.

By targeting these business practices, the CFPB could make it more difficult for companies to attract, train, and retain employees. Companies should not have to jump through new regulatory hoops to have reasonable safeguards that protect the investments they are making in human capital, including the risks they are taking when hiring new employees and providing training. To read more click here.

Picking Apart the Validation Notice Requirements

Monday, 22 February 2021 11:59
Written by Steel Rose
Category: Uncategorised

Collection agencies should begin reviewing their debt validation notices, ascertain their ability to use the Model Form and what, changes, will need to be in preparation for the November 30, 2021 effective date. Among other things:

All letters should be reviewed and adjusted to comply with the Rule and the agencies should begin coordinating with their letter vendors to ensure a smooth transition on November 30, 2021;
Agencies should begin reviewing and assessing how they will deliver validation notices- will they take advantage of electronic means or will they continue to send validation notices via mail;
Agencies should begin discussing and coordinating with their first party clients the itemization date and what additional information will need to be provided to the agency at placement to ensure compliance with Section 1006.34’s new validation requirements;
Agencies should begin reviewing and assessing applicable state disclosure requirements to ascertain their impact on the agency’s ability to use the Safe Harbor Validation Notice and what adjustments, if any, will need to be made to address the same; and
Once the agency has its validation notice in final form, all agencies should consider a final compliance review of the notice to ensure the agency is aware of any heightened litigation risks or errors. To read more click here

1991 Congressional Hearing Shows How Far TCPA Has Strayed

Tuesday, 23 October 2018 23:41
Written by Artin Betpera for The National Law Review
Category: Uncategorised

In Part III of TCPAland’s review of the comments submitted to the FCC, I noted that some of the consumer-side comments submitted to the FCC pointed to a 1991 Senate Subcommittee Hearing in which “predictive dialers” were supposedly discussed. This hearing was used to make the point that this technology was in existence at the time the TCPA was passed in 1992, and was therefore intended to be regulated by Congress.

As I mentioned in Friday’s article, I was going to personally watch that hearing and provide you with my breakdown. And as promised, I dutifully sat down over the weekend and watched the recording of that two and a half hour hearing.

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Debt Validation Letters Explained

Friday, 22 May 2020 19:18
Written by Steel Rose
Category: Uncategorised

Uh oh. A debt collector is making attempts to collect after notifying you that you owe money. What’s your next move?

Your first step should be to verify the debt. Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), the debt collector must send you proof of the debt through a process called debt validation.

Overhaul Boosts Credit Scores of Millions of Consumers

Wednesday, 15 August 2018 23:19
Written by AnnaMaria Andriotis and Josh Zumbrun of The Wall Street Journal
Category: Uncategorised

The credit scores of millions of U.S. consumers have risen following a broad overhaul of how credit-reporting firms handle negative credit information.

Consumers who had at least one collections account removed from their files experienced an 11-point increase, on average, in their credit scores, according to a report released Tuesday by the New York Federal Reserve. The report was based on a sample of millions of anonymous credit reports from credit-reporting firm Equifax Inc. Collections were completely removed from 8 million consumers’ credit reports in the 12 months through June, resulting in an average 14-point increase.

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