Background screening - risks and solutions

Bob Capwell, Co-Chair of the Board of Directors for The National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS), gives the lowdown on why background screening can be crucial.

Threats of workplace violence, employee theft, résumé fraud and the cost of employee recruitment and retention are some of the things that keep many HR Professionals up at night. Savvy hiring managers always have these threats at the front of their mind when pondering the benefits of conducting background checks. A comprehensive background check can usually provide insight into many of these risks before they happen.

The threat of negligent hiring litigation should be a great concern of every employer. Employers in every industry sector can fall victim to a negligent hiring lawsuit. Since the seventies, negligent hiring tort claims have resulted in settlements and awards at the multi-million dollar level. A payout of this magnitude can cripple an organization financially or push it into bankruptcy.

Before fully understanding the risks of not conducting background checks as they relate to negligent hiring, employers need to understand two very important principles: due diligence and negligent hiring. In the context of pre-employment screening, due diligence refers to the duty of care an employer must take to ensure that persons selected for employment do not pose a threat to others. The employer’s duty to exercise due diligence in a hiring situation can be met by conducting a thorough background investigation. The search of criminal records can be an employer’s first line of defense when mitigating this risk.

Criminal behavior

As a rule of thumb, employers conduct a criminal records check based on the current and past residences of an applicant. Customarily, a criminal records search is conducted at the county jurisdiction and based on residence information provided by the applicant. Don’t be fooled by the obvious. Many criminals know the court system and the background screening practices of many employers. For example, if a candidate has a felony or any other type of criminal conviction in their past, they may provide misleading information to throw off your investigation. Misrepresentation of the subject’s name, social security number and date of birth are many of the tricks they use. Proper information must be provided to a court researcher as court records are cataloged by these sources and a criminal record may go unnoticed if accurate information is not provided.

A verification of the candidate’s true identity should always be conducted to match these identifiers with your candidate. Using a social security trace tool used by many background screening firms can provide insight into the correct spelling of an applicant’s full and alias names and may uncover misrepresentations within this information. Non-disclosed addresses are the most widely used ploy by many criminals. It’s the old adage used by the screening industry, if we don’t check we can’t find it.

The use of national databases has also become very popular in today’s comprehensive criminal search. Today, there are many more automated resources provided by several court jurisdictions to uncover records that may not have been searched by conventional means. In today’s screening process, we can search international and national resources including sex offender databases, exclusion lists and state correctional records to uncover records of many transient offenders. With current technology, we can cast a safety-net across hundreds of jurisdictions to look for offenses that have been committed by candidates traveling or visiting areas around the country or even the world. Don’t forget, you get what you pay for.

Database searches are fast and inexpensive and should be used as an additional tool or as an enhancement to traditional screening. Database searches can be useful; however, beware that they are not all-inclusive and may be full of holes from many reporting jurisdictions. Updated and accurate records are a great concern when using criminal database searches. Many courts do not update records in a timely manner and may not update final disposition in many instances. The use of current and accurate information should always be used as a standard best practice when using this type of resource. You should always have your screening company go back to the original reporting jurisdiction to conduct a physical inspection of records for accurate results.

Using expunged or dismissed records can be a legal nightmare if used as part of your hiring decision. You should always consult a labor attorney or proper legal council when using criminal records as part of the screening process. There are numerous federal and state laws that prohibit use of certain records and may include time-line restrictions for use. Other things that should be considered; does the offense pertain directly to the position applied for or does it violate any EEOC requirements? Many screening firms can point you in the right direction when using criminal records.

Looking good on paper

If you think that someone’s criminal past is your worst headache, résumé fraud is just as much of a concern. Applicants have several tricks up their sleeves when it comes to crafting a competitive résumé. From lying about past work history and education credentials, to falsifying professional licenses, applicants have thought of just about every way imaginable to place themselves above other job candidates.

Several industry studies indicate that a great many applicants lie on their résumés. A majority of embellishments are in education and employment such as claiming to have a college degree or claiming to have worked in a particular position or at a senior management level. False claims range from stretching the truth to flat out lies.

Information available online at www.resumefraud.com indicates that applicants continue to utilize online diploma mills to obtain fictitious credentials. The US Department of Education defines a diploma mill as “an organization that awards degrees without requiring students to meet educational standards for such degrees”.

In a recent study, Comprehensive Information Services, Inc. (CIS) purchased from a diploma mill a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Human Resource Development and Management with a 3.5 grade point average. It cost $519.00 and arrived in a package sent from an overseas company. The package contained an authentic-looking diploma, transcripts, a certificate of participation in the school’s student council, and an award of excellence. To make things even more realistic, the package included an alumnus bumper sticker and window decal.

Another tactic used by dishonest job seekers is ‘date stretching’. This ploy is used when a candidate fears that a past employer will not give a favorable opinion. The candidate will stretch the end date of the immediately preceding employment to the start date of the immediately following period of employment, thus concealing the middle period.

Where to turn

Background checks come with many options. Apart from federal and state mandates, employers have their own options. They can choose to screen all applicants, some applicants, or no applicants, and they can choose to go with bare-bones screening, intermediate-level screening, or thorough screening. But before making any choices, the employer should weigh the risk potential. In the simplest sense, the employer can ask, “What risk do I face if I don’t screen this type of applicant?” For a person applying for a job in the accounts receivable department, the risk may be embezzlement; for a person applying for a job as a cashier, the risk may be theft from the register; for a person applying for a job that involves stress and close proximity to others, the risk may be violence; and for a person applying for a job as a heavy equipment operator, the risk may be serious accidents. Each risk has its own parameters and not all risks should be measured in dollars alone. The employer has to consider loss of talent, loss of morale, and loss of reputation.

Employers should first develop a pre-employment screening policy that ensures compliance with the FCRA and other applicable laws such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and regulations established by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). The policy can call for a narrow, limited program, such as screening applicants for a single class of work, or a comprehensive program for screening all or most all applicants. Some jobs will standout as critical. For example, a job that places an employee in close contact with children is a critical job. Background screening programs for a job of this type would include ruling out that an applicant is using a false name, making comprehensive searches and examinations of criminal records, and matching the applicant’s name against sex offender registries. The human resources department should also administer a battery of psychological tests.

Of course there are just as many background screening firms as screening options, so the challenge is to find a reputable firm. A great place to look is The National Association of Professional Background Screeners. NAPBS was founded to provide standards, education, and best practices for screening firms both nationally and internationally. Currently, there are over 373 screening firms that are members of NAPBS. They come in all shapes, sizes, and capabilities. An employer looking to contract with a screening company would be well advised to closely examine credentials. The three main attributes are experience, quality of work and compliance with the law, more specifically the FCRA. Other considerations would be size of the firm and the ability to handle large volumes of screening, if needed. Another question would be the firm’s ability to provide services over many decentralized locations. Technology is also a big question as the world of applicant tracking and system integration has become commonplace.

In conclusion, employers should continually assess their workplace and consider the harm and the costs a bad hire could bring to their organization. Develop a consistent and comprehensive screening policy and consult a background screening provide which has the knowledge and depth to provide a cost effective and timely screening solution.

Robert Capwell is President and CEO of (CIS) Comprehensive Information Services, Inc. He is considered one of the leading experts in the background screening industry and is a founding member and the current Co-Chair of the Board of Directors for The National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS).