2011 Best Employee Screening Posts

Insanely Simple Employee Background Screening

June 15, 2012 By Chris Miller

I recently read Ken Segall’s new book “Insanely Simple: The Obsession That Drives Apple’s Success”. Ken Segall is an advertising executive who worked closely with Steve Jobs for over 12 years at NeXT and Apple. He’s the guy who came up with the iconic iMac name and helped develop Apple’s famous “Think different” campaign.

The book takes you on an entertaining and insightful journey through Steve Jobs’ world. You understand how Jobs’ love of Simplicity made Apple one of the most successful companies in the world.

This got me thinking about my own company and how much I love Simplicity. Employee background screening is a complicated process that is getting more complicated every day. But we make it simple. Our cloud-based employee screening software is incredibly easy to use.

You log in, enter the applicant’s SSN, a few clicks to verify the information and your background check gets ordered. No more time consuming data entry and errors. We make sure you receive an accurate, compliant background check.

Insanely simple employee background screening

What Employers Need to Know About Conducting Criminal Background Checks in Massachusetts

March 19, 2012 By Chris Miller

courthouse

Littler Mendelson, the nation’s largest employment and labor law firm, has an important update for Massachusetts employers conducting background checks:

Massachusetts Employers Face New Obligations When Conducting Background Checks Involving Criminal History Records

Effective May 4, 2012, the Massachusetts Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) Reform Act (the Act), which was enacted in August 2010 with the controversial “ban the box” legislation, will significantly change the way employers access, use, and maintain information obtained through the Commonwealth’s CORI system. The Act will allow all employers access to a new online records system, but also imposes obligations on employers that acquire criminal history information from private sources, such as consumer reporting agencies (background report vendors such as FYI Screening). Employers should review their hiring and background check policies now to determine whether any updates are necessary.

2010 CORI Reform Explained: How the law is changing, and when. (pdf)

Photo credit: Zoom Zoom

Does Your Background Screening Program Need A Check-Up? – What’s Hot in Background Screening News

February 2, 2012 By Chris Miller

Welcome to our monthly edition of “What’s hot in employee background screening news”. If you want to become smarter about background screening, you’ve come to the right place. Here are some of the news items that caught our attention last month.

Pre-Employment Criminal Background Checks: Learning from Pepsi’s $3.13 Million Mistake

Pepsi has agreed to pay $3.13 million and provide job offers and training to resolve a charge of race discrimination filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC). Based on the investigation, the EEOC found reasonable cause to believe that the criminal background check policy formerly used by Pepsi discriminated against African Americans in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

[click to continue…]

Screening Your Background Screener

The employee screening environment is rapidly evolving, making it hard for businesses to keep up. That’s just one reason why businesses are either outsourcing background checks to a partner or are not conducting screenings at all.

For those not conducting pre-employment screening, the case for reconsidering is air tight. If you’re working with an expert partner, it’s important to stay on top of the changing nature of background checks to be sure you’re working with the best partner for your business.

[click to continue…]

5 Reasons Why Criminal Background Checks Are a Perfect Storm for a Lawsuit

Criminal background checks of job applicants seems to have reached a tipping point as a topic in employment-law circles. So, what are the key components leading to this perfect storm of EEO laws and how can an employer avoid the perfect storm?

[click to continue…]

Former Domino’s Pizza Employees Allowed to Proceed with Class Action Against Company for Background Check Violations

On January 25, 2012, United States District Court Judge Deborah K. Chasanow denied Defendant Domino’s Pizza’s Motion to Dismiss in Singleton, et al., v. Domino’s Pizza, LLC, 8:11-cv-01823-DKC (D. Md.).

In a lengthy opinion, the Court ruled that the plaintiffs properly alleged that Domino’s violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act by (1) running background checks on employees without proper authorization; and (2) “systematically” failing to provide employees with copies of their background checks prior to taking adverse employment action against them.

[click to continue…]

Following Deadly Stabbing, Restaurant Could Face Penalty For Hiring A Felon

The killing of a south Charlotte store manager – allegedly by a felon hired to work there – highlights the risks companies take when they hire an employee with a criminal record, or don’t do a full background check on applicants.

[click to continue…]

No Background Check Done: Bookkeeper Accused of Stealing $1 Million From Archdiocese

When a church worker was hired by the archdiocese in June 2003, it did not perform criminal background checks on prospective employees, as it does now. Church officials were unaware until recently that the bookkeeper had been previously convicted of grand larceny in one case and had pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor in another.

[click to continue…]

Social Media Background Checks : Off-duty Conduct Laws :: Oil : Water

One report suggests that as many as 91% of employers use social networking sites to screen potential employees, with as many as 69% of employers rejecting a candidate because of information discovered on a social site.

Jon Hyman, from Ohio Employer’s Law Blog, has written about some of the risks employers face when conducting background checks on employees via Facebook or other social media sites.

He gives us one more risk to consider: off-duty conduct laws.

29 states have laws that prohibit employers from taking an adverse action against an employee based on their lawful off-duty activities.

[click to continue…]

Photo credit: JelleS

Get the latest background check updates

Our most widely-read posts of the year:

Sign up to receive the latest background screening tips and news directly to your inbox!

The Importance of Quality Background Checks – What’s Hot in Background Screening News

December 1, 2011 By Chris Miller

Welcome to our monthly edition of what’s hot in employee background screening news. If you want to become smarter about background screening, you’ve come to the right place. Here are some of the news items that caught our attention last month.

Unauthorized employee recommendations, references on social media may put employers at risk

Employers are beginning to realize that their employees are sending or receiving recommendations on social media sites, such as LinkedIn, about co-workers’, vendors’, and customers’ work performance or services that are inconsistent with the employer’s policies. Worse yet, they may even be providing false or fraudulent information. Employers need to take a hard look at their employees’ recommendations on social media.

[click to continue…]

Woman on a crusade for change after her sister was murdered by an air duct cleaner in Florida

When you have work done at your home, do you know who’s coming to your door?

Two local women thought they were safe calling Sears to have their air ducts cleaned.But it turned into a nightmare after a convicted felon with a history of harassing women showed up to do the work.

This could happen to you too, even if the company you hire does background checks.

[click to continue…]

Background check law could get some Pennsylvania teachers fired

A new Pennsylvania law requiring all school workers to disclose their criminal history could see some employees who have been convicted of various crimes lose their jobs.

The law, signed by Governor Tom Corbett in June, went into effect in September and mandates background checks for all employees of public, private and vocational schools. Administrators must notify employees of the law and have them return a form reporting any criminal history by December 27.

[click to continue…]

Employer held responsible for negligent hiring: Kansas City-area lawyers win $7M verdict over truck crash

A group of Kansas City-area lawyers won a $7 million verdict Thursday for the family of an Arkansas truck driver killed in a 2008 accident.

The truck driver who caused the accident — a driver whose license had been twice revoked — was hired negligently, said lead attorney Kent Emison.

In a statement, Emison said the company could have learned of Quisenberry’s driving history in 15 minutes through a simple background search. He said the verdict is part of a growing trend of employers being held responsible for negligent hiring.

[click to continue…]

How effective are background checks in protecting children from abusers?

Experts point a various problems that make it difficult to truly protect children.

Many molesters fly under the radar and don’t have contact with law enforcement for years. Many organizations only do a criminal background check when someone is employed and don’t re-check periodically. Offenders at times plead to lesser charges that might not raise flags. And even Megan’s Law, designed to create as sex-offender registry, has loopholes.

[click to continue…]

Cracks in background check system give drug abusers, mentally ill access to guns

Gaps in the Federal Background Check system may be putting guns in the hands of killers, according to a new report by Mayors Against Illegal Guns.

The report finds two huge gaps in the National Instant Criminal Check System (NICS). The biggest one, and hardest to fix, boils down to a communication problem. Many states and state agencies do not cooperate with the system. The blame doesn’t fall on solely on state agencies, federal agencies don’t comply with the background check system either.

[click to continue…]

Texas state criminal database is flawed

According to a recent report by the Texas State Auditor’s Office, nearly one out of every four criminal records is incomplete, while some are completely missing for the state’s database.

Thousands of Texas businesses, day cares, schools use the state’s database for criminal background checks.

[click to continue…]

Photo credit: Johan AP