OAR 839-017-0177: Publication of False, Misleading, or Fraudulent Information Prohibited

No employment agency shall knowingly publish or cause to be published any false, fraudulent, or misleading information, representation, notice, or advertisement. The following are types of advertising which are considered false or misleading: (1) Exclusive listing in advertisements of jobs designated as “fee paid” by agencies which do not operate exclusively on the basis of no fee to the applicant for employment, in such manner as to give the false impression that all jobs handled by the agency are “fee paid” jobs. (2) Where both “fee” and “fee paid” jobs are listed, use of the phrases such as “100 percent free” or “all free” as column headings, so as to give the impression that the entire agency operation is on a “fee paid” basis. (3) Designating jobs as “fee paid” where this is true only if certain conditions are met. For example, jobs where the employer will pay the fee only if the applicant for employment stays on the job for a stipulated period of time, or jobs where the employer deducts the amount of the fee from the applicant’s salary, or where the employer will pay only a portion of the fee, or if the fee payment on the part of the employer is a negotiable item. (4) Use of the phrase “lowest fee” or similar words, where the agency’s fee is not in fact the lowest fee rate in effect in the area in which the agency does business. (5) Headlines or titles relating to fees, such as “Applicant Pays Fee” or “Fee Paid,” must be set in the same type of equal size and boldness, when an agency advertises both categories of jobs. (6) In group advertisements which contain both “Employer Pays Fee” and “Applicant Pays Fee” listings, all listings of each type shall be grouped together in a block under the respective title, or each listing must include a designation as to the source of the fee. (7) If an advertisement is of a job or jobs for which the employer pays the fee, and if the agency so advertised, the ad must state in type of equal size and boldness, that the agency also handles jobs for which the applicant for employment pays the fee if such is the case. (8) Ads worded so as to mislead the applicant for employment regarding the nature of the position advertised.