Beginning in December, most private employers will be barred by law from using polygraphs and other types of lie detectors to screen job applicants or test the current employees except in rare circumstances. Under new regulations issued Friday by the Labor Department, employers can be fined up to $10,000 for requiring a job seeker or employee already on their payrolls to submit to a polygraph exam for voice stress analysis. The regulations, which take effect Dec. 27, implement legislation passed by Congress and signed by President Reagan last June outlawing about 85 percent of the current use of lie detector tests. The congressional Office of Technology Assessment had estimated that 2 million polygraph examinations were conducted last year _ 90 percent of them by private employers. Some 7.2 million employers nationwide will be required to put up posters in December summarizing the prohibitions and exemptions and outlining the rights of any worker asked to take a lie detector test. Fred Alvarez, assistant labor secretary for employment standards, said the posters will be mailed out in the next three or four weeks. In addition to the fines, anyone required to take the test in violation of the new law can sue employers in federal and state courts for relief, such as employment reinstatement, promotion and any payment of lost wages and benefits. Exempted from protection under the ban are employees of federal, state and local governments or of federal contractors engaged in national security, intelligence or top secret activities. Also exempted from the ban are prospective employees of armored car, security alarm and security guard firms hired to protect operations affecting health and safety, national security or money. Pharmaceutical concerns or companies manufacturing, distributing or dispensing controlled substances also can require job applicants to submit to a lie detector test, but only for those people who would have direct access to the drugs. Polygraphs still can be used by employers to investigate specific incidents of theft, embezzlement or sabotage, but not a persistent problem, such as recurring inventory shortages. But any workers asked to submit to a polygraph exam under those conditions must be given at least 48 hours advance notice and a statement in advance telling them of their rights, including the right to refuse the test or to terminate it at any time. The pre-test statement also must explain the specific incident or activity being investigated and the basis for the employer's suspicion that the person asked to take the exam was involved in it. Results of a polygraph test or refusal to submit to such an exam cannot be used alone as a basis for taking any action against an employee. The regulations also forbid disclosure of the test results to anyone other than the employee without the employee's consent or a court order.
In June President Reagan signed a law banning about 85 percent of the current use of polygraphs. The Justice Department has said it will appeal that ruling. About seven million private employers will no longer be allowed to require job seekers or those on the payroll to take a polygraph test, under penalty of a $10,000 fine. The employers must post signs summarizing the prohibitions and exceptions. Companies providing security services are exempt, as are drug companies for those actually handling drugs. Polygraphs can still be used to investigate specific occurrences of theft, embezzlement and sabotage.