Colorado’s JAFA – Compliance Tips for Employers

The Colorado Job Application Fairness Act (JAFA, CO Senate Bill 23-058), signed by Governor Polis on June 2, 2023, goes into effect on July 1, 2024, and applies to all Colorado employers, including state and local governments, and their representatives and designees.

What employers may not do:

• Ask applicants to disclose their age, date of birth, and dates of attendance/graduation from an educational institution.

• Post other inquiries similarly disclosing age — for example, asking which election an applicant first voted in would, asking when they graduated high school, or giving information on when they likely turned 18.

What employers may do:

• Request additional application materials at the initial application stage, like certifications and school transcripts but they must notify applicants that they are free to redact information related to age, birth date, and dates of attendance/graduation.

• Verify compliance with age requirements required by an occupational qualification related to public or occupational safety; a federal, state, or local regulation; or a state or local law required by an occupational qualification. However, an employer verifying compliance in an initial application may not ask an individual’s specific age — including age-disclosing information like dates of birth, school attendance, or school graduation.

As an example, Colorado law forbids minors from selling or serving alcoholic beverages. A restaurant hiring someone to serve alcoholic beverages:

• May ask in an application whether the applicant will be at least 18 when they would start work.

• May ask the applicant, after extending a job offer, to provide evidence of their age, like a driver’s license, without redacting age information.

• May not ask an applicant to disclose or provide evidence of their age, like an unredacted driver’s license, in or with the employment application.

JAFA will be enforced by the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE). For a first violation, an employer will receive a warning. Penalties can be up to $1,000 for a second violation and up to $2,500 for later violations. Employers can avoid penalties by complying with an order for compliance issued by the CDLE within 15 days.

Employers are encouraged to review their job postings, ads, employment applications, and recruiting processes to make sure they do not include questions about an applicant’s age, date of birth, and dates of attendance/graduation from an educational institution.