Report on inaccurate background checks contains inaccuracies itself

A report which came out recently that discussed the inaccuracies surrounding criminal background checks, has itself been shown to be full of inaccuracies too.

The report from the National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) called ‘Broken Records: How Errors by Criminal Background Checking Companies Harm Workers and Businesses’ claims mistakes on criminal background check reports conducted for employers cost job seekers employment and recommends solutions for improving the accuracy and accountability of background check providers.

However, a San Francisco-area based safe hiring expert finds the NCLC report “is itself fatally flawed with errors and inaccuracy” and has written an article, ‘Consumer Group Report on Inaccurate Criminal Background Check Reports Loses Impact Due to Lack of Objectivity and Errors,’ to address the “erroneous information and unfounded conclusions” contained in the report.

Attorney Lester Rosen, author of ‘The Safe Hiring Manual,’ writes that while the NCLC report “suggests inaccurate criminal background checks are widespread,” the report only “cites a handful of anecdotal stories and some court cases where an inaccurate background check had grave consequences on a consumer’s ability to get a job out of the millions of background checks conducted yearly.”

Rosen’s article cites several examples of erroneous information and unfounded conclusions in the NCLC report that include:

• The NCLC report insinuates that the problem of inaccurate reports is widespread by citing a few anecdotes. Yet in the entire report, only a handful of examples are given even though the background screening industry performs millions of background checks per year.
• The NCLC report fails to mention that consumer litigation provides a powerful tool for consumers who may be the victims of an inaccurate report.
• The NCLC report fails to note that a United States Supreme Court case decided in June 2007, Safeco Ins. Co. v. Burr, substantially increased the risk of punitive damages by ruling that a reckless disregard of the FCRA could be sufficient to show “willful” non-compliance, a decision that has led to a dramatic increase in class action litigation.
• The NCLC report omits, and completely fails to recognize, the great benefit that background screening reports provide society in reducing workplace violence, theft, and fraud, along with putting the best qualified candidate in each open position. The employer also has the legal obligation to exercise due diligence in hiring.
• The NCLC report fails to recognize or understand the service background screening firms perform in working with applicants to help correct inaccurate data. Since background check reports are often the first time an applicant discovers there is inaccurate information in the public sphere that needs correcting.
• The NCLC report does not differentiate between “data brokers” who dispense aggregated and unconfirmed data and Consumer Reporting Agencies (CRAs) that assemble and evaluate material from a number of sources to provide a background check report where all information reported has been confirmed at the source during its preparation.
• The NCLC report, in lumping CRAs together with data brokers, fails to note that a group of approximately 170 leading Consumer Reporting Agencies called ‘Concerned CRAs’ has publically rejected the use of databases without taking the steps necessary to a ensure accuracy and completeness as required under the FCRA.

The National Consumer Law Center report ‘Broken Records: How Errors by Criminal Background Checking Companies Harm Workers and Businesses’ is available here.

The article ‘Consumer Group Report on Inaccurate Criminal Background Check Reports Loses Impact Due to Lack of Objectivity and Errors’ by Attorney Lester Rosen is available here.

81% of IT professionals support background screening

A study released by TEKsystems®, a leading provider of IT staffing solutions, IT talent management expertise and IT services, claimed that 81% of IT professionals “agree that the more thorough the (screening) process, the greater the chance the candidate and employer will be a quality match”.

While this is an impression provided by just one industry, it would certainly be possible to suggest this represents the workforce overall. With organizations becoming wary of resumes because many include irrelevant buzzwords, exaggerations and lies, the study went on to say that “nearly two-thirds (64%) of IT professionals say resumes include misrepresentations of the truth.”

Furthermore, four out of ten IT professionals say it is common for IT professionals to get positions for which they are unqualified. “If nearly half of your team was unqualified for their positions, you’d feel the pain — and so would your customers. Especially given the number of business demands IT departments must satisfy, it is critical for IT to hire the best people for each job,” says TEKsystems Director, Rachel Russell. “People are the foundation of any great enterprise. Quality screening practices are essential to gaining a truly competitive advantage.”

Find a solution

While many understand the importance of background screening, most struggle to find out how to get started. It’s integral you know how to perform background checks  as well as having knowledge on the types of background checks you are looking for.

Additionally, with so many dubious screening companies out there, you must do your research and ensure you team up with a reliable and trustworthy background screening company.

If you have any questions about background screening and how you can implement a program, get in touch today.

Australian company told “no urine drug tests”

A state-owned electricity company is appealing against a Fair Work Australia ruling so it can conduct urine tests on its employees, arguing it has a right to determine whether its staff are chronic drug-users.

During arbitration last month, Fair Work Australia determined it would be ”unjust and unreasonable” for Endeavour Energy to conduct urine tests because the tests could show a positive result from drug use days earlier. The senior deputy president of FWA, Jonathan Hamberger, ruled the company should instead use oral swabs, which generally detected drugs taken only in the preceding hours.

In its notice of appeal, Endeavour Energy argued urine testing had value as a ”deterrent” to drug use and was more accurate than oral swab testing.

”We have an overriding legal and social responsibility to protect the safety of our staff at work from foreseeable risks associated with chronic drug use,” the company said. ”It is urine testing, not oral swab testing, that best mitigates those foreseeable risks.”

But one of the five unions representing Endeavour Energy’s workforce said its management was out of step with the state’s other energy distributors, who had moved to swab testing.

”The organisation is now, in my view, wasting taxpayers’ money for a vendetta against its workforce,” Scott McNamara, energy manager at the United Services Union, said. ”Urine testing is something that is done to basically socially monitor people, and has no effect in identifying fitness for work.”

The dispute is being watched by other unions, who believe it will set an important precedent for other workforces. Drug testing is increasingly common and the issue of swab versus urine testing is hotly contested.

Source: The Sydney Morning Herald

Background checks skyrocket in March due to gun sales

The March 2012 NSSF-adjusted National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) figure of 1,189,152 is an increase of 20.0 percent over the NSSF-adjusted NICS figure of 990,840 in March 2011.

For comparison, the unadjusted March 2012 NICS figure of 1,715,125 reflects a 19.3 percent increase from the unadjusted NICS figure of 1,437,709 in March 2011. This marks the 22nd straight month that NSSF-adjusted NICS figures have increased when compared to the same period the previous year.

Though not a direct correlation to firearms sales, the NSSF-adjusted NICS data provide a more accurate picture of current market conditions. In addition to other purposes, NICS is used to check transactions of firearms sales and transfers on new and used handguns and long guns.

Gun background checks hit a peak at Christmas, and the trend seems to be staying strong. But there is a difference of opinion as to why we are seeing such high sales of firearms, and the background checks that come with that.

“I believe it’s because of the political uncertainty, where we are at and also because of the economic uncertainty, the recession if you will,” Texas Gun Store Owner Burnie Stokes said. “Anytime you have those two factors figured in, there is a false, there’s a sense of insecurity, and people are going to try to protect themselves.”

Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Shalimar feels differently: “There’s been a steady creep, an erosion of gun rights by cities and counties.” Back in January, many called for a statewide ban on the sale of high-capacity gun magazines like the one used to wound U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, D-Ariz., and kill six others.

Furthermore, a larger focus on checks both from a federal and state perspective means that individuals are having to go through firmer checks prior to being able to own a firearms.

Nonetheless, this trend with firearm background checks seems to represent the state of the background screening industry as a whole. Increased background checks and drug screening in employment is believed to represent how our economy is starting to recover, with things starting to move forward after the period of stagnation.

We’ll keep an eye on these numbers, and let you know whether the trend continues.

How to perform employment checks in North Carolina

Performing employment checks in North Carolina is pretty similar to the employment check regulations across the country. However, with unemployment levels at a high in the Tar Heel State, employment checks in North Carolina become an even more stringent part of the pre-employment process.

If you’re an employer in North Carolina (or in any state for that matter), here are a few simple steps for how to get started. With unemployment relatively high in North Carolina, now is the perfect time for you to start performing these checks to ensure you have a productive and effective workforce:

Find a pre-employment screening service

The first thing to realize is that North Carolina employment screening, along with these checks anywhere, can be complicated, and you don’t want to cut any corners. Find yourself a reliable pre-employment screening service who know the rules, regulations and legislation for your state.

Research before you make your choice. ‘Free’ and ‘Instant’ background check companies are often fake or simply don’t do a very good job. This sort of information on people is neither free nor instant, so be sure to go with someone professional.

Choose the right checks for your business

There are many different types of background checks, including resume checks, work verification, credit checks, drug screening and criminal background checks – a screening service can help choose which are right for your business.

Stay consistent

It is important to continue staff testing once job applicants are hired – North Carolina employment screening is no different. It’s imperative that you run a pre-employment screening check – but don’t stop at that. Continue to run checks on your staff regularly, as you never know what you might have missed the first time.

Let’s get started!

If you’d like any more information about employment checks in North Carolina, or how we can help you get started, get in touch today. We’ll get you on the road to protecting your business, your employees and your future.

Chamber wants review of EEOC background check guidance

Originally published in Law360, New York

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce in a letter released this week urged the Office of Management and Budget to require the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission to seek public comment before issuing new guidance on employer use of criminal convictions or credit history.

The lobbying group claims that the EEOC is planning to issue two guidance documents concerning the interaction of disparate impact under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and employer use of information obtained during applicant and employee background checks. One document will relate to credit history information, and the other will discuss criminal history, the Chamber said in a letter to Cass Sunstein, the administrator of the OMB’s Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.

“By all accounts, the EEOC is now preparing to approve these significant guidance documents without making them available for public comments and without seeking review by the OMB,” the letter said.

You can view the full letter here.

Avoid hiring unproductive employees once and for all

Unproductive employees are a problem for almost any business. Whether it is a lack of interest in the job role, a poor work history or even something as extreme as drug and alcohol abuse, there are a few simple ways that employers can protect  their company from the cycle of hiring unproductive workers.

Listen up employers, CEO’s and business owners, here are three sure-fire ways to improve your business productivity and profits:

• Verify work and education history

It is critically important for any company to determine whether the information a job applicant provides is genuine, by instituting a verification process. Whether it’s their work history or their education history, 53% of job applications contain inaccurate information, so you can’t always take an applicant’s word as truth.

Be sure to verify previous employment claims (such as positions, timeline and successes) as well as education claims (including school and grades). Also check references, for both education and work – this will give you a better overall picture of the potential employee.

• Run background checks

It’s a vague term, but what we are referring to here really are criminal record checks and drug testing. According to statistics on drug abuse by American workers, workplace drug and alcohol use costs U.S. businesses an estimated $100 billion each year. In addition, 30% of all business failures are caused by employee theft. So don’t take these checks lightly - doing it right could save your business down the line.

• Listen

Most importantly, really listen. To the candidates, to their references, to their record and to your team. It’s easy to want to make a quick hire, but it’s incredibly important you minimize hiring mistakes. Making a wrong decision now will cost you down the line through employee turnover, lack of efficiency and poor productivity.

All-in-all, it’s not that tricky. These three simple actions will go a long way to increasing the success of your company. For more information, get in touch with us today and we will do our best to send you in the right direction.

Increased drug screening implies economic recovery

According to recent data from the employment screening industry, the economy is on the recovery. Increases in drug tests across the country imply that employers are most definitely starting to bring in new staff.

“Employers are beginning to hire again,” said Gordon Basichis, Co-Founder of the Corra Group. “[Employment screening businesses] are seeing increased orders as well as inquiries from new or prospective clients who…are up and running and wishing to streamline their employment screening process.”

“We are seeing more requests for drug tests” said Basichis. “Even with companies where drug tests are not required for industry standards or compliance purposes,” employers are making sure their job candidates are clean and sober.

“In healthcare, the defense industry, or in trucking and transportation, you could expect that drug tests would be added to the screening package. But now even retailers and manufacturers are requesting drug tests for their employment candidates.”

Our post last month showed how employment, particularly in the private sector, is on the rise. This increase marked the twenty-fifth consecutive monthly gain in private employment, as measured by the ADP report.

Following the previous report, which stated that almost a quarter of a million jobs had been added to the US economy, this is another step in the right direction. Background screening directly correlates to levels of employment and, according to recent information, things are looking up.

We will likely get a better vision of how the next year or so looks by the end of Q2 2012, but for the time being, the outlook seems to be positive – for employers, for applicants and for the economy.

Senator promises to block invasive employer social media checks

Senator Richard Blumenthal has vowed to put a stop to privacy-invading Facebook checks by employers with a piece of forthcoming legislation, according to DigitalTrends.

Blumenthal announced this week that he plans to submit a bill that would make it illegal for employers to require job applicants to turn over the social network login credentials.

Employers requesting that job applicants provide access to their personal social media profiles has become quite a common occurrence. Performing a social media background check is one thing, but requesting access to the applicant’s personal information within their profile is a very different story, according to critics.

“I am very deeply troubled by the practices that seem to be spreading voraciously around the country,” Blumenthal told Politco. He added that employers already have “a lot of ways to find out information” about job candidates.

Blumenthal says that his bill will include some exceptions, like for federal and local law enforcement agencies, and government agencies that handle national security issues. He also indicated that private companies that receive government contracts would be regulated under the legislation.

Where to draw the line?

Companies have long used applicants’ social media presence as part of their vetting process, but most have limited to what can be found through publicly available posts, which does not include most Facebook activity, which is usually private. As Facebook Chief Privacy Officer Erin Egan noted today, this practice does not just violate the “privacy expectations and security” of the job applicant, but also that of everyone with whom the applicant is friends on the social network.

“We don’t think employers should be asking prospective employees to provide their passwords because we don’t think it’s right the thing to do,” writes Egan. ”But it also may cause problems for the employers that they are not anticipating.  For example, if an employer sees on Facebook that someone is a member of a protected group (e.g. over a certain age, etc.) that employer may open themselves up to claims of discrimination if they don’t hire that person.”

Egan adds that Facebook will “take action to protect the privacy and security of our users, whether by engaging policymakers or, where appropriate, by initiating legal action, including by shutting down applications that abuse their privileges.”

Sen. Blumenthal says that the legislation, while still a work-in-progress, will be submitted to Congress “soon.”

Do you think employers should be provided access to job candidates social media profiles?

The rights and wrongs of background checks

Considering that 53% of all job applications contain inaccurate information, background checks ought to be something all employers should be implementing or at least considering.

However, employers have to be careful. There is a lot of legislation surrounding background checks, employment law and an individual’s right to privacy, so if you are running background checks, you need to make sure you do it right.

With that in mind, here are some quick rights and wrongs for how to perform background checks:

Rights

• Inform the prospective employee that you plan to perform an online search.
• Make use of the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which spells out everything you’re allowed to look into.
• It might also be worth checking sex offender registries and running Patriot Act searches.
• Get written permission from the candidate before you investigate anything.
• If you plan to undertake the background check yourself, you must be aware of the regulations, procedures, and policies that you must comply with in order to perform a legal background search.

Wrongs

•  Investigating an applicant without their explicit permission.
• Be wary of running social media background checks, as you may come across information which could influence your hiring decision, such as race or age. To make a hiring decision based on such information is illegal.
• If you do uncover something that  gives you reason enough not to employ this person, you are required to give notice to the applicant that their consumer report was reviewed, give them a copy of the report, and provide them the FTC’s A Summary of Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. It’s vital you don’t skip this.
• Background checks are neither free nor instant, so avoid background screening companies or websites that make such promises.
• Don’t cut corners. The initial up-front investment of running background checks will be well worth it in the long run.

All in all, background checks can certainly be a complex process, so hopefully these quick tips will help. A final piece of advice would be to hire a pre-employment screening company – they will ensure you stay within the legislation guidelines and gather the most reliable results.