HR 101: To Background Check or NOT to Background Check
When it comes to making hiring decision, the more information you have about a candidate, the better.
More information makes it easier to decide if the candidate will work out, but could too much information be a bad thing?
When deciding whether or not to include background checks as a part of your hiring process and which types to use, you should consider the relevancy to the specific position you are hiring for.
Any time you use an applicant’s or employee’s background information to make an employment decision, regardless of how you got the information, you must comply with federal laws that protect applicants and employees from discrimination.
One last very important point is to be consistent with your practices: You can’t pick and choose who you run background checks. This could lead to claims of discrimination and create major headaches.
W. Barry Nixon is the COO, PreemploymentDirectory.com the leading background screening information portal and online worldwide directory of professional background screening firms and Suppliers to the background screening industry. He co-authored the landmark book, Background Screening & Investigations: Managing Hiring Risk from the HR and Security Perspective. He also is the publisher of award winning newsletters, The Background Buzz and The Global Background Screener, and the author of the Background Checks column in PI Magazine.
In addition, Barry is a past recipient of the elite ‘Top 25 Influential People in Security’ by Security Magazine and past Co-Chair, International Committee for the National Association for Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS). He currently serves as a Global Ambassador for NAPBS.
You can contact Barry at 1-949-770-5264 or online at wbnixon@preemploymentdirectory.com