Priceless Background Screening Advice…
Straight from the Experts By SUSAN MCCULLAH
H R P R O F E S S I O N A L S are responsible for many vital components affecting their organization’s health. One of the most impactful ones is background screening. The process is heavily regulated (especially in certain industries), making staying in compliance challenging. There are also rules from the FCRA that must be followed to protect consumers’ rights and privacy while still making sure you thoroughly screen your applicants. These reasons are why it’s smart to trust the experts when you’re crafting and revising your policy. We’ve compiled some background screening advice straight from the most notable industry experts. Check out what they have to say.
Bill Current, Founder of the Current Consulting Group and Author of “Why Drug Testing: Updated and Expanded for 2020”
Measuring the ROI of drug testing. “ Drug using employees cost employers an average of $8817 per year from turnover, loss of productivity, accidents, and medical costs. These costs can be reduced or almost eliminated with a thoughtful and consistently implemented pre-employment drug screening process.”
Bianca Lager, President of Social Intelligence
Many workplace issues now start with social media posts. “ The type of information people share on social media can be impactful on the workforce. One of the main trends is screening for hate speech. This is because it can lead to toxic workplace behaviors and potential external issues.
By formalizing your social media screening and monitoring policy, you maximize the chance of finding what you need without invading applicants’ or employees’ privacy.”
John Hawkins, Senior National Account Executive for Data Facts
It’s important to run a Federal Criminal Records Search if you want to find all felony convictions. “ Employers must make sure they’re checking Federal District Courts in addition to County Courts for felony records. These courts are not always checked because most felonies are logged in the county system. However, due to an increase of cybercrimes that fall into the “across state lines” category, there’s an increase in crimes being processed in Federal District Courts. Employers who are only pulling a County Criminal Records Search will miss these federal felony records.”
Johnna Leeds, Senior VP of Compliance for Data Facts
Employers are required to protect consumer data. “ Employers have legal requirements regarding the protection of consumer data. Per the FCRA, there are three current requirements. The first is limiting the dissemination of consumer information to only those with a legitimate need as authorized by the consumer. The second is retaining consumer data in a confidential manner. The third is destroying data in a secure manner. Employers must render information inaccessible, unreadable, and/or unrecoverable. FTC Rules permit the following methods: 1) burning, pulverizing, or shredding, 2) destroy or erase electronic files and/or 3) after conducting due diligence, hire a document destruction company.” www.HRProfessionalsMagazine.com
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