Criminal Record
HRH
83 Posts
We have just begun criminal background checks for certain positions in our company. Now that I have the information, what do I do with it??? I don't pretend to be an expert at this and I want to interpret the information fairly. Any suggestions? Many thanks!
Comments
1. Make sure you have consent, IN WRITING, from all people you are doing background checks for. There are guidelines for what these consent forms should state.
2. Are these checks for current employees or prospective employees? If for current employees, that's a whole different ordeal. Shoot me an e-mail if you want more info.
3. For prospective employees, you're looking to see if the background check meshes with information provided in the resume and application. If those employees will be driving company vehicles or handling money, you would want to check their driving records and credit reports, respectively. Make sure everything on their background check is within limits for your company's insurance policies, bonding procedures, liability policies, etc.
4. For current employees, it's sometimes advisable to re-check them for changes in pertinent areas, i.e. their driving record if they drive vehicles, or their criminal record if they work with sensitive information.
Bottom line, be careful that any decisions you make based on these reports is not discriminatory in nature, and that if you do use something in those reports in a way that negatively impacts the individual, that you send an adverse action letter, if appropriate. Do a gut check and see if your actions are based on a legitimate business reason. Please feel free to contact me if you want further information - I spend a LOT of my time on background checks and how they impact my employees!
This may seem like the "shameless plug of the week" (to quote the oft-quoted James Sokolowski), but this really, truly is meant to be of some help. Quite coincidentally, a 90-minute audio conference on Background Checks is scheduled for November 14, 2007. It's titled: "Background Checks: Follow the Rules, Know the Risks, Reap the Rewards." The speakers will be Carolyne S. Beaty and John B. Phillips, Jr., corporate counsel and deputy general counsel, respectively, of Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. For more information about the speakers or the agenda for the event, please go to
[url]http://www.hrhero.com/audio/breaks/?[/url]
For additional resources, search the newsletter archives on this website. I just searched for the term "background check" in "all states" . . . "for the last three years" and got 274 hits. If you need help doing the search, give me a call.
Tony Kessler, director of editorial
M. Lee Smith Publishers LLC
(615) 661-0249 ext. 8068
Conviction relevancy (job & company)
Seriousness of conviction (misdemeanor or felony)
Time of conviction (how long ago and whether still relevant)
State Laws (time restrictions combined with certain anticipated position earnings whether conviction can be considered - KS, MD, MA, NH, NY, TX, WA)
Industry regulations (some industries have federal and state standards that may restrict certain hires with a felony history)
As mentioned previously, don't neglect your FCRA obligations of pre-adverse decision letters and turndown letters. These have time restrictions so do your research and good luck!