BACKGROUND CHECKS ARE BECOMING COMMONPLACE FOR BUSINESSES OF ALL SIZES When you are looking to hire employees for your business an interview or screening process is standard. This will help you determine the qualifications and skills of each candidate. With workplace violence and security concerns background checks are becoming more routine during this pre-employment screening process. To help avoid possible legal hassles it’s best to be informed of your local laws. According to The Society for Human Resource Management Workplace Violence Survey, “Over 96% of HR professionals report that their companies do background checks of new hires, up from 66% in 1996.” Now there are a few things you need to be aware of before you begin any background check. This will help protect your business from possible legal issues or lawsuits. Typically a background check can help reveal a wide range of information, including, but not limited to:
social security number
school records
credit records
driving records
criminal records
The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires all businesses to have these potential employees grant you authorization to perform a background check. They need to give you permission. Have a disclosure form ready for them to sign during the interview process. The American With Disabilities Act (ADA) limits the amount of disability, including medical, information you obtain. There are certain things you cannot ask in a
background check. Typically these are questions that can be used to uncover a disability of illness. An example could be ‘what prescriptions are you taking?’ Another thing to be aware of is the ADA only pertains to companies with 15 or more employees working for them. This includes local and state governments. With the background check laws varying state to state it’s a good idea to consult with your local regulators, especially when looking into their criminal past. There are even outside companies who’ll provide the screening and background checks for you. Outsourcing this process can help you avoid any legal hickups. This includes limited legal immunity under FCRA. No matter which route you choose you should educate yourself on background checks. Learn what you need to do to protect yourself.
Run an Instant Background Check today for your prospective employees. With unlimited access to over 1 billion records you can look into an individual’s past discreetly and efficiently. Search Now!