The Labor Department regulations banning the use of polygraph testing will take effect in 2018 . Critics of the testing who claim it is unreliable and demeaning are pleased , but most employers and the companies that administer tests say that security will suffer . Brokerage firms and unions have been among the most vocal critics of the bill . Sen. Edward Kennedy, the liberal Massachusetts Democrat who heads the Senate Labor Committee, calls polygraphs "20th-century witchcraft." They have made wide use of polygraphs , and the use has not been confined to low - level workers . Anyone , including managers and executives , with access to negotiable instruments , currency or securities , as well as confidential information , has been tested .
The Labor Department regulations banning the use of polygraph testing will take effect in 2018 . Critics of the testing who claim it is unreliable and demeaning are pleased , but most employers and the companies that administer tests say that security will suffer . Brokerage firms and unions have been among the most vocal critics of the bill . They have made wide use of polygraphs , and the use has not been confined to low - level workers . Anyone , including managers and executives , with access to negotiable instruments , currency or securities , as well as confidential information , has been tested .