NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - For many in this economy, the fact that they are unemployed isn’t their fault. But some people are being denied a new job because they currently are without one.

WCBS 880′s Rich Lamb On The Story

New York City Council Speaker Christine Quinn calls it shocking.

Now, she says the City Council is poised to pass a bill to make it illegal for a company to use someone’s employment status against them in a job application.

“We’re gonna say, ‘Employers, you cannot discriminate against the unemployed,’” she said. “How are we ever going to get unemployment numbers down if we allow companies to continue to say only people with jobs can get jobs?”

City Councilman Vincent Gentile says the bottom line is that this practice is another form of employment discrimination.

1010 WINS’ Stan Brooks reports

“This is not only counter intuitive but it’s unconscionable especially in light of the fact that so many unemployed have been out of work for extended periods of time,” Gentile said.

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