Improving Your Employment Screening Program in 2015 (Part 2)

Choosing the Right Screening Package

Employment screening can be a little overwhelming. A lot of people that are initiating a background screening program for the first time ask, “What kind of records should I look for?” The answer to that question depends on a number of factors:

1. Which industry is your company a part of?

Your industry plays an important part in what searches need to be run. For example, if you are in the transportation industry, there will obviously be an emphasis on driving records. For a job in the healthcare industry, on the other hand, a background check may include checking & monitoring health care sanctions, education verification, and license & certification verification.

2. Are there any particular searches that are required by law in your state or industry?

Most states require criminal background checks if the job involves working with children, elderly, or disabled. Certain positions, for example, may require a thorough background check for security clearance. While certain searches are required, we recommend protecting your company by doing more than the bare minimum required by the state.

3. What are the responsibilities of the position you are attempting to fill?

The EEOC recommends that criminal conduct exclusions be related to tasks required by the particular job the individual has applied for. If a job requires the employee to work with children, you would not hire someone who has recently been found guilty of indecent exposure. As this particular charge interferes with business necessity, denial of employment would be the only course of action.

4. How much access will the applicant have to assets and/or customers?

The more access the employee has to your company’s assets and customers, the more thorough your background check should be. Neglecting to run a complete background check is high risk and can have catastrophic results. For example, a position may require the managing, monitoring, and/or using assets for the company’s best interest. It would be prudent for the employer to conduct a comprehensive background check to look for red flags such as theft, embezzlement, fraud, forgery, etc.

Figuring out the screening criteria for each position can seem like a daunting task. Start by asking yourself these questions. Still overwhelmed? Reach out to your vendor. This is where their experience should come in handy.

Remember to use the same employment screening criteria for each individual applying for any given position. Facing a lawsuit for discrimination can be detrimental to your organization, but is also completely avoidable. For more information about legal compliance, refer back to Part 1 (Compliance) of our 3-part blog on "Improving Your Employment Screening Program in 2015".

S2Verify Has Received NAPBS Accreditation

We are proud to announce that we have received accreditation by the National Association of Professional Background Screeners’ (NAPBS®) Background Screening Credentialing Council (BSCC). This endorsement from the NAPBS validates our commitment to service excellence. This accreditation serves as proof of our business and process standards. It reflects the values our company has maintained since its inception in 2009.

To become BSCC-accredited, consumer reporting agencies must pass a rigorous on-site audit, conducted by an independent auditing firm, of its policies and procedures. The audit focuses on six critical areas: consumer protection, legal compliance, client education, product standards, service standards, and general business practices. Only about 10% of background screening providers in the United States are NAPBS accredited. We are so honored to be in elite company and recognized as one of the leaders in our industry. 

For more information about NAPBS accreditation and what it entails, click here. 

How to Stimulate the Economy and Create Jobs

With the recent recession and all the hard times of many American's, there has been a lot of movement by local states and the EEOC to ban credit checks for employment purposes.   Statistically, credit checks are not used very often for the mass number of background checks performed.   In fact, only 13% of  companies  perform credit checks on all their applicants.  

Also, there is no correlating data that suggest a bad credit score is an indication that someone will steal from the company.   That being said, I am still shocked that the average person doesn't realize that employee theft is a serious problem.
Consider statistics from the American Society of Employers:

• Businesses lose 20% of every dollar to employee theft.
• 20% of employees are aware of fraud at their companies (including theft of office items, false claims of hours worked, and inflated expense accounts).
• The average time it takes for an employer to catch a fraud scheme is 18 months.
• 55% of perpetrators are managers.
• 44% of workers say their companies could do more to reduce fraud.
• The U.S. Retail Industry loses $53.6 Billion a year due to employee theft.
• 60% of companies have staff trained to deal with fraud and ethics issues (up from 30% in 2000).

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce estimates that 75% of all employees steal at least once, and that half of these steal again and again. The Chamber also reports that one of every three business failures are the direct result of employee theft.

Also, 30% of businesses fail due to employee theft.   This is a serious problem for our economy and jobs. In fact, most small companies do not perform  employment screening.  Background Screening could stop a lot of loses and improve business and hiring. Imagine if those 30% of businesses continued to operate and hired employees. 

Massachusetts Bars Employers from Requesting Criminal History from Applicants

Massachusetts becomes the second state to bar both the public and private employers from requesting applicants to disclose criminal history information.    Effective November 4, 2010, both public and private employers from requesting that job applicants disclose criminal history information on an initial job application (also known as “Ban the Box” legislation). 

Massachusetts follows Hawaii, who in 1998 was the first state to prohibit employers from inquiring about an individuals criminal record.  However, unlike Hawaii, Massachusetts  does not prohibit an employer from questioning an applicant about a criminal record during the interview process or requesting a pre-offer background screening;(though inquiries about arrests that do not lead to a conviction or inquiries about certain misdemeanors such as public drunkenness, simple assault, minor traffic violations and disturbing the peace are prohibited).

The Massachusetts law does provide for two important exceptions to the prohibition requesting applicants disclose criminal records on job applications.  An employer may request criminal record information on a job application if:  (1)  the applicant is applying for a position for which a federal or state law or regulation creates a mandatory or presumptive disqualification based on a conviction of certain criminal offenses; or (2) the employer is subject to an obligation under a federal or state regulation to not employ a person who has been convicted of certain offenses.The employer can still perform employment screening.

Should you have any questions about this legislation,you may contact  us at 770-649-8282 or email Aly.Sharp@s2verify.com