Last Updated on February 16, 2024 by Flavia Calina
Many industries have compliance-related hiring requirements that include background checks. Working with a company that can help you navigate these complex rules and regulations, including the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), can save your business time, money, and headaches.
Look for a digital and mobile-optimized process that includes candidate consent and ongoing updates for employers and candidates. This way, both parties fully understand what’s found in the background check results.
Legal Compliance
Hiring new employees is a critical process that requires significant time, money, and resources. To ensure you’re selecting the best candidates for your organization, background checks should be an essential part of your hiring strategy. A background check can help you find crucial information about a candidate while also helping you stay compliant with laws and regulations that may restrict the checks you can run on job applicants.
A background check can protect your organization against potential legal liability if you hire an employee with a criminal record. This risk can include negligent hiring lawsuits if the employee causes harm to the company or customers. It can also include fines if you violate a law or industry regulation. A background check can help you avoid these issues by identifying red flags in the hiring process and providing a safer work environment for your employees.
Reputation
You may think of background checks in terms of screening potential employees, but you should also consider running comprehensive background checks on business partners. Understanding the history of your business partners can prevent several problems, such as data breaches or intellectual property theft.
Background checks uncover information unavailable on a resume or during an interview. This information can ensure that your company meets its legal obligations, protects workplace safety, and builds trust within your organization.
Additionally, companies that fail to run background checks and overlook red flags are at risk of negligent hiring lawsuits. For example, if you hire a driver with a criminal record of driving-related offenses, and this employee causes an accident that hurts or kills someone, the victim’s family may file a lawsuit against your company for negligence. You can mitigate risks and maintain your company’s reputation with a background check service that uses compliant and candidate-friendly processes.
Cost
While cost is an important consideration, it should never be the sole factor in a hiring decision. Companies that ignore the importance of background checks risk the safety of their employees, customers, and the company’s reputation and are exposed to costly, negligent hiring lawsuits.
To avoid these costs, recruiting leaders should determine what types of searches they require to be carried out by a professional screening firm. Then, select a provider that offers these services within a budget that meets the requirements of their business.
Another cost-saving measure is to ensure consistency in the screening process. This will reduce the time and resources needed to complete each search, thus reducing the overall cost. Also, to minimize costs, consider working with a company that passes along access fees (fees charged by court and state data providers) rather than marking them up on each report. This will allow the company to offer a more competitive rate.
Safety
The wrong employee can ruin your business’s reputation and cost you thousands in legal fees. Background checks can help you avoid negligent hiring lawsuits. These checks are essential in safety-sensitive industries. For example, a bank teller with a criminal record may steal money from customers. At the same time, an account manager with a history of fraudulent activity could jeopardize your client’s financial information.
Reputable background check services provide comprehensive searches that include criminal records, employment verifications, and credit reports. In addition, they prioritize data security to protect your sensitive candidate and client information from unauthorized access.
Additionally, reputable companies are certified by the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA). This certification ensures that they adhere to FCRA compliance and meet strict standards in information security, legal and compliance, client education, researcher and data standards, verification service standards, and business practices. It also demonstrates that a company has the resources and expertise to provide quality service.
