The new Consumer Financial Protection Board (“CFPB”) will be enforcing the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”). The CFPB have modified previous forms utilized during background checks and are required under the FCRA. The new forms are as follows:
Pre-employment screening has been big news lately, as the rising use of social media for pre-hire screening comes into conflict with privacy laws meant to protect job candidates from discrimination. NPR tackled this sticky subject recently in a “Talk of the Nation” segment about just how far employment background checks should be allowed to go.
Experts tell us that 80 percent of HR professionals use pre-employment background screening. The background screening market is estimated to be worth two to three billion dollars. Yet many small-and medium-sized businesses are still relying on old-fashioned screening techniques – i.e. asking for and following up with references – rather than conducting professional employment background checks. Unfortunately, this approach is outdated and potentially hazardous for an SMB. (more…)
Companies that fail to keep a close eye on legal developments regarding pre-hire screening put themselves at risk of costly litigation. As every attorney expert in employment law can tell you, pre-employment background check processes are not the sort of thing you want to “set and forget.” A strong, easily defended pre-hire screening process should be consistently updated to reflect the latest EEOC and FCRA rulings. Moreover, states and cities consistently pass new laws about how employers can conduct pre-employment background checks. To protect your business, it’s important to track pre-hire screening news and adjust your methodology accordingly.
As part of a reputable business, you want to be sure you are protecting your company from the risk of unsubstantiated legal claims and lawsuits. Being associated with illegal or unscrupulous employee background check practices has the potential to devastate not only your company’s bottom line, but its reputation in the community, as well. In order to minimize these risks during the employment screening process, it’s important to follow the standard rule of retrieving only pertinent information via an employee background check.
As employers, we strive to build the best workforce possible. Oftentimes, the final step in the pre-employment screening process for potential employees is conducting a criminal background check. Even though we wish to receive the clearest picture of who we are offering employment to, making employment background checks a mandatory part of the hiring process always includes risks.
A corporation’s motive for conducting employment background checks is obvious: By investigating applicants’ history, companies can avoid hiring insalubrious, untrustworthy characters. This focus on employee investigation isn’t just paranoia; in a recent whitepaper, ADP reported that 6 percent of the employment background checks they conducted for other companies in 2010 revealed a criminal record. Beyond the enormous impact a bad hire can have on operations and profits, failing to research new hires can be termed negligence in court.
Because life is literally in the hands of a health care professional, background checks are essential. Healthcare background checks help ensure that untrustworthy individuals are not hired by hospitals, nursing homes and other healthcare facilities. Tragedies can be avoided if administrators conduct thorough healthcare background checks.
Do you have a common name? Many people do, and all are at risk of being mistaken for someone with the same or a similar name due to simple clerical errors. When these errors show up in a criminal background check, the results can be disastrous.
The Penn State child abuse scandal that has been so prominent in the news recently has highlighted a great need to make sure people who interact with children are responsible and trustworthy. It would be nice to think that high-profile individuals are all good folks with admirable characters, but as has been discovered in the case of Jerry Sandusky, this is not always realistic – and that’s where criminal background checks come in.
