EEOC Informal Discussion Letter

EEOC Office of Legal Counsel staff members wrote the following informal discussion letter in response to an inquiry from a member of the public. This letter is intended to provide an informal discussion of the noted issue and does not constitute an official opinion of the Commission.

Non-EEOC Issue

Dear :

Your inquiry about the legality of a job application form was recently forwarded to this office for a response. The material that you highlighted indicates that you question whether employers may legally ask for an applicant's social security number, address, phone number and driver's license number and make that information a matter of public record.

The EEOC enforces Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VII), prohibiting discrimination on the basis of national origin, race, color, religion, and sex; the Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 (ADEA), prohibiting discrimination against employees 40 years of age or older; the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA), prohibiting discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities; and the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (EPA), which prohibits pay discrimination between men and women who perform substantially equal work in the same establishment.

Because the issues that you raise do not involve discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age or disability, they fall outside the scope of the EEOC's authority. Thus, we are unable to assist you in this matter.

Please note that this letter is does not constitute an official opinion of the Commission.

Sincerely,

Dianna Johnston
Assistant Legal Counsel

This page was last modified on April 27, 2007.