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“Ban the Box” Can Affect Employer Hiring Practices and Results

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More than 100 counties and cities nationwide in 19 states have recently adopted “Ban the Box” laws. Employers and small businesses should be aware that these laws compel employers to consider job applicant qualifications first, not their past behavior.

Ban The Box

“Past” refers to a criminal record history including convictions. “Ban the Box” refers to employers not requiring job applicants to check a box revealing their criminal history. Employers must refrain from factoring this information into their hiring decisions, at least at first.

Balancing Worker and Employer Rights

“Ban the Box” types of initiatives offer job applicants a fair shake at a brighter future by taking the conviction history query from the application and delaying inquiry until later on in the process.

Momentum has grown quickly for this policy, with six more states adopting a Ban the Box rule in 2015. A total of 19 states now enforce this policy. The current list of states that “ban the box” during hiring as of this writing are as follows:

California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Georgia, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Ohio, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Virginia. Seven states have taken away conviction history queries on private employer applications, indicating further evolution of the Ban the Box policy.

On a federal level, the EEOC (U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) endorsed removing the question about the convictions as a best practice for 2012, saying that civil rights laws apply. The “My Brother’s Keeper” Task Force of the Obama Administration also endorsed this movement when plugging hiring practices that encouraged employers to judge candidates on their individual merits and give them a fair chance.

“Ban the Box” legislation could affect employer hiring processes and results in the following ways:

Employers Have a Unique Opportunity to Assist the Community

Policies promoting a fair chance can benefit communities profoundly. In some cases, those who made mistakes in the past have reformed and are just looking for an opportunity to prove themselves.

A Reward of Quality, Loyal Workers

Many employers are seeing the value in hiring someone who is truly looking to make a fresh start. A job can make all the difference in someone’s life; giving someone with a past a chance can result in a loyal, hardworking employee.

While Ban the Box has been banned in some states, vetting for viability is allowed later in the hiring process. Using a professional employment background screening service for criminal checks can help take the guesswork out of proper job applicant screening so that businesses stay in compliance with current laws.

Disclaimer Statement: All information presented is never intended as legal advice and is for information purposes only.

Part-Time Employee And Juvenile Background Checks

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Juvenile Background Checks

Background checks are par for the course among full-time employers, but an increasing number of part-time employers are also following suit. The result is a greater number of high school employees being asked to satisfy background screening requirements, with many of these young workers not even having reached the age of eighteen. Although records for young offenders are often sealed, juvenile background checks have a way of revealing details indicative of whether a particular teen could be a risk to take on. Equipped with this information, employers must determine whether juvenile applicants who fail to pass obligatory juvenile background checks are worth the risk they pose.

Why Screen for Juvenile Background Checks

When making hiring decisions, some employers are quick to give younger applicants the benefit of the doubt, with many failing to even bother with a criminal background search for teenage prospects. These employers believe that they can learn everything they need through the interview process or, perhaps, by checking a few references. While both approaches are excellent for determining whether an applicant has a future with the company for which they have applied, this may not be enough to determine whether a young applicant could pose a risk if hired. With teens, as with all other applicants, background screening can remove some doubt.

Even trusting employers find themselves performing background screening on adolescent applicants simply because they believe that it is fair to all of the other employees. If one applicant must pass a background screening in order to be hired, it is only fair to ask the same of the others, regardless of age.

What To Do If A Teenage Applicant Fails A Juvenile Background Checks Screening

Failed juvenile background checks are of major concern for any employer, as this most likely indicates that the applicant has committed a crime within the last year or two. Can the prospective employee be trusted to have changed his or her ways since then? It is important to follow through and ask the employee for an explanation, as well as proof of completed community service hours. Some leniency is to be expected, as teenagers are prone to mistakes. Through the criminal background follow-up process, worried employers can determine whether potentially problematic adolescent applicants are likely to make similar mistakes while on the job.

Disclaimer Statement: All information presented is never intended as legal advice and is for information purposes only.

A Background Check Goes Deeper than You Think

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Reviewing a person’s criminal history is of great importance, especially in certain industries; however, a background check can be used to gain access to lots of other valuable information.

Background CheckAccording to a recent survey, most businesses (80 percent) perform one or more background checks when hiring new workers. More than half of the respondents stated they carry out educational verification checks, and almost half of them look at applicants’ driving records. And while large firms tend to conduct these checks more readily than small businesses, the latter nonetheless has hopped on the background check bandwagon.

Here’s a quick rundown of four common background search products that businesses should be using when hiring new workers.

Criminal History

Both felony and misdemeanor convictions can be identified through a criminal history background check. In some instances, it may even be possible to view charges that were brought forth but dismissed — manslaughter, domestic abuse, drug charges. Each state has its own laws regarding criminal history checks, such as providing access to only the past seven years of a person’s life.

Credit Report

A background check that reviews an applicant’s credit report is advantageous for positions that provide access to money or clients’ personal information. Bank tellers and loan officers are excellent examples of people who should have to undergo a credit report check in order to be hired.

Educational Check and Credential Check

For positions that require degrees, certain credentials, or certifications, educational checks are of the utmost importance. There are many applicants who falsify their information, and when hiring these people, this puts a huge liability on the company. Take for instance a healthcare facility that hires a nurse. If the nurse doesn’t truly have her nursing license and an incident were to take place, this could be detrimental to the facility’s ability to remain open.

Social Security Background Check

This background check is often overlooked, but it can deliver in-depth details about a person’s past. With a social security check, it’s possible to identify alias names of a person as well as the addresses of where the applicant lived during the past seven years. This means if Joe applies for a job and says that he has lived in Washington all of his life, yet his social security background check says he’s lived in five different states over the past seven years, then it will become obvious that he’s not telling the truth. Plus, by identifying alias names, this provides businesses the ability to conduct more comprehensive criminal background searches.

Disclaimer Statement: All information presented is never intended as legal advice and is for information purposes only.

Addressing Employment Screening Seasonal Hiring Challenges

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Typically, the assumption in employee screening is that, once a professional has been vetted and approved, he or she will work with a given company for, at minimum, several months. While this is true of many businesses, certain industries call for the seasonal hiring of temporary employees. Seasonal work is particularly prominent in the retail and distribution industries, where the holiday season necessitates an expanded workforce. According to a CareerBuilder survey, 39 percent of retailers hired temporary employees during the 2013 holiday season.

Seasonal Hiring

Businesses requiring the assistance of seasonal employees often back off on standard screening practices, reasoning that employees will only be around for a couple of weeks or, at most, a few months. This can be a disastrous mistake, resulting in weak employees, some of whom may leave employers stranded by quitting in the middle of the busy season. To avoid this problem, employers need to remain proactive with screening, ideally getting a head start on the seasonal hiring process.

Look To Rehire High-Quality Employees

One of the easiest ways to avoid hiring issues is to encourage high-quality employees to return during future busy seasons. If possible, consider keeping these staff members working on a part-time basis throughout the year, amping up hours during the holiday season or other busy months. Some employers find it beneficial to ask student employees to return, often having these staff members work extra hours when they are on break from college. A dedicated group of returning employees will minimize screening and employee training requirements, making it easier to focus on a smaller group of new hires.

Begin Seasonal Hiring And Screening Early

Unfortunately, it is not always possible to secure return employees for seasonal gigs. As such, it is vital for employers to have solid plans for acquiring new talent long before the busy season arrives. Although it is impossible to know exactly how many employees will be required during a rush period, employers can make rough predictions based on past experiences. It may be prudent to get the word out about jobs for seasonal hiring long before the busy season arrives. This will eliminate the need for the risky last-minute hires capable of jeopardizing an otherwise successful business.

Ultimately, no matter when the hiring process takes place, employers need to remember that thorough pre-employment screening is every bit as important for seasonal hiring as it is for the hiring of permanent staff members. All employees represent a company’s brand and thus, need to be held to the same standard.

Disclaimer Statement: All information presented is never intended as legal advice and is for information purposes only.

Workplace Violence – What Employers Need to Know

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According to the United States Department of Labor, almost 2 million American workers are victimized at work every year and there is no way to determine how many workplace violence cases go unreported.

Workplace Violence Violence in the workplace can strike anywhere and at any time. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standards require that employers provide staff members with a workplace that is free of dangers. An employer can take precautions to minimize or even prevent issues related to workplace violence. Violence Prevention Programs and Employment Screening prior to hiring employees are two ways to help prevent workplace violence.

Workplace Violence, Defined

Workplace violence ranges from verbal abuse to homicide. These violent behaviors can involve clients, employees, visitors and customers.

Workplace violence is described as any threat or act of:

  • Harassment
  • Physical violence
  • Threatening disruptive behavior
  • Intimidation

Workplace Violence Costs to the Employer

The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) conducted a survey related to workplace violence. According to this survey, the direct costs to an organization connected with an incident of workplace violence include:

  • A general productivity loss of nearly 40 percent.
  • A management opportunity cost of almost 60 percent.
  • Replacement costs, due to worker turnover, more than 30 percent.

Reduce the Likelihood of Violence in the Workplace

OSHA states that implementing a violence prevention program, in conjunction with administrative and engineering controls, and sufficient training techniques can help reduce the probability of violence in the workplace. In order for a program such as this to be effective, all staff members must be aware that every claim of violence in the workplace is considered serious and will be investigated.

Employers must make it clear that upon completion of the investigation, guilty parties will be held responsible for their actions. Employers must consistently penalize individuals who do not abide by the rules set forth in the violence prevention program.

OSHA Law Requires Working Conditions be Free of Known Dangers

Workers deserve a safe workplace and clearly, employers want to keep their staff members safe. For this reason, employers need to identify the risk factors of their business and take the steps necessary to minimize or prevent such violent acts. If staff members believe their workplace does not meet the safety standards set forth by OSHA, they can file a complaint. Complaints such as these may prompt an inspection.

Background Screening May Help Staff Members Feel More Secure

One way an employer can make staff members feel more secure is by performing background screening on all employees. These employment background screening searches should include sex offender registry search information, criminal background search, employment eligibility verification, Social Security checks and professional reference checks. A thorough employment background screening may disclose undesirable past behaviors that may increase the possibility of an individual committing a violent act.

Disclaimer Statement: All information presented is never intended as legal advice and is for information purposes only.

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