State Senate argument

On January 24, 2017, Attorney Natalie Friedenthal presented an argument before the New Hampshire State Senate in opposition to proposed Senate Bill 22 (SB 22). SB 22 provides immunity to employer who shares information regarding a former employee with regard to work history, misconduct, and competence only subject to suit if the employer alleges and proves that the employer shared false information and knew that it was false. The current standard protects employers from sharing any information which is true, truth being a defense to slander and libel. This new proposed bill would be expected to harm employees by allowing employers to share any information except for information they knew was false. Under this law, there would be nothing to prevent an employer from sharing gossip he heard in the break room about Alice being late, since he didn’t know if that rumor was false. The senate is currently considering all testimony.