District of Columbia HR guidance for practitioners.
Pick a topic below to see the federal rule, the DC statute, and the practitioner steps Ask HR AI walks you through in a session.
District of Columbia at a glance
- Report lookback: 10 years conviction lookback (D.C. Code §2-1402.66). The Fair Criminal Record Screening Amendment caps conviction reporting at ten years from completion of sentence and prohibits any consideration of arrests not leading to conviction.
- Ban-the-box: Statewide; conditional-offer-only rule. Employers with 11+ employees may not inquire about a candidate's criminal history until after a conditional offer.
- Salary history: Banned + range posting required. The Wage Transparency Amendment Act of 2023 requires pay range and benefits in job postings and prohibits wage-history inquiries.
- Cannabis: Statewide off-duty protection (2023). The Cannabis Employment Protections Amendment Act protects most employees from adverse action for off-duty cannabis use, with carve-outs for safety-sensitive and federally regulated positions.
District of Columbia topics
FCRA adverse action in District of Columbia
The two-step FCRA adverse action process: pre-adverse notice with a copy of the report and Summary of Rights, a reasonable waiting period, and the final adverse action notice.
Read the DC guideBan-the-Box and Fair Chance hiring in District of Columbia
When employers may ask about criminal history, individualized assessment requirements, and the state and city ordinances that add rules on top of federal EEOC guidance.
Read the DC guideWage and hour in District of Columbia
FLSA exempt vs non-exempt classification, overtime rules, meal and rest breaks, off-the-clock work, and state daily-overtime rules that overlay the federal floor.
Read the DC guideLeaves and accommodations in District of Columbia
Coordinating FMLA, ADA reasonable accommodation, workers' comp, pregnancy accommodation, and state paid family and medical leave programs.
Read the DC guideDrug testing and marijuana in District of Columbia
Pre-employment, reasonable-suspicion, and post-accident drug testing across states with off-duty cannabis protections and safety-sensitive carve-outs.
Read the DC guidePay transparency and pay equity in District of Columbia
State and city pay range disclosure laws, pay equity analyses, and how to respond to an applicant's compensation question.
Read the DC guideHarassment prevention and training in District of Columbia
Mandatory sexual harassment training in CA, NY, IL, CT, DE, ME, WA — plus prevention policies, complaint channels, and Faragher/Ellerth defenses.
Read the DC guideBackground check basics for HR in District of Columbia
What a compliant employment background check includes, FCRA disclosure and authorization, and how to interpret common report components.
Read the DC guideRelated SafestHires resources for District of Columbia
- District of Columbia background-check rules — the underlying state-screening reference.
- District of Columbia FACIS healthcare screening — Medicaid exclusion and licensing boards.
- All states — jump to another state.