| Description of Pre-Employment Screening Tools |
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| A chart describing various screening tools, why they’re important, and what the imitations of each are. |
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| By Lester S Rosen |
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| Below are descriptions of various screening tools, including type of information. Why the information is important and their limitations. |
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What? |
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| Provides names and addresses associated with the applicant’s Identity such as Voter Card, Photo Identity, Ration Cards etc,. and may indicate any fraudulent use. May verify other applicant information. |
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Why? |
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| Provides names and addresses associated with the applicant’s Identity such as Voter Card, Photo Identity, Ration Cards etc,. and may indicate any fraudulent use. May verify other applicant information. |
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Limits |
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| Provides names and addresses associated with the applicant’s Identity such as Voter Card, Photo Identity, Ration Cards etc,. and may indicate any fraudulent use. May verify other applicant information. |
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What? |
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Fclony and misdemcanor convictions, and pending cases, usually including date and nature of offense, sentencing date, disposition, and current status. A search generally goes back seven years. Employers can also search Government court record.
It is critical to search both for felonics and misdemcanors in state court, since many serious violations can be classified as misdemcanors.
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Why? |
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| Critical information to protect your business and employees. Protects employer form negligent hiring exposure and helps reduce threat of workplace violence, theft, disruption and other problems. Failure to honestly disclose a prior criminal conviction can also be the basis not to hire. Many employers check all jurisdictions where an applicant has lived, worked or studied in the past seven years. |
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Limits |
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| Some restrictions on having certain information (such as arrests not resulting in convictions), or certain minor offenses. Employment cannot be automatically denied based upon a criminal record, but must show some sound business reason. Contrary to popular perception, criminal records are not available by computer nationwide. Background firms must check the public records at each individual county courthouse that is potentially relevant |
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What? |
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| Credit history and public records such as judgments, liens and bankruptcies. May include previous employers addresses and other names used. |
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Why? |
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| Helps determine whether an employee is suitable for a position involving handling cash or the exercise o financial discretion, as well as a possible way to gauge trustworthiness and renaonty |
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Limits |
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| A credit report should only be requested when it is specifically relevant to a job function and the employer has appropriate policies and procedures in place to ensure that the use of credit reports are relevant and fair. |
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What? |
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| Will confirm degrees, diplomas or certificates and dates attended. |
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Why? |
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| Confirms education and ability to do the job. |
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Limits |
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| Industry sources show that 30% of all job applicants falsify information about their educational background. Some schools require a fee, or will only fax to an 800 number. |
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What? |
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| The type of license, whether currently valid, dates issued, state and licensing authority. |
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Why? |
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| Confirms whether an applicant has the required credentials or licenses. |
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Limits |
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| There is a high incidence of job applicants making up or falsifying licenses or credentials. |
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What? |
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| Date of filing, case type, case number or file record, jurisdiction and if available, identity of parties involved. |
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Why? |
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| Discover whether your applicant has sued former employers or has been sued for reasons that are relevant to employment. |
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Limits |
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| An employer should use this information where it is relevant to job performance. It is advisable to have standard policies and procedures for use. |
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What? |
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| Information about Worker’s Compensation Claims and previous injuries. |
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Why? |
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| Employers use data to conduct post-job offer review in compliance with strict standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). |
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Limits |
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| Federal and state laws regulate the use of these records. Employer should contact labor attorney before obtaining. |
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What? |
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| Contact personal references to ascertain additional information about your applicant concerning fitness for the job in question. |
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Why? |
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| Personal references can provide valuable information as to a person’s character as it relates to the job opening. |
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Limits |
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| Reference should be asked about relationship to the applicant in order to evaluate the information. Can also contact “developed” references for a better picture. |
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What? |
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| Addresses, Dates resided, Reasons for moving, history of being evicted or leaving without paying dues |
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Why? |
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| Whether the candidate has exhibited behaviour incompatible with the position sought, Personal reputation, & additional information from landlords, neighbours, roommates & others acquinted. |
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Limits |
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| Privacy & private property laws will some time dictate the conduct of some investigations.. |
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What? |
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| Basic verification includes dates of employment, job title and reason for leaving. Some employers will verify salary. Usually obtained from HR or Payroll. Some employers have the information recorded on a 900 service. |
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Why? |
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| This information confirms your applicant’s resume, and verifies their previous job history. Helps eliminate any unexplained gaps in employment, which ensures that appropriate jurisdictions have been checked for criminal records.Critical to verify past employment even if past employers will not give a reference. |
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Limits |
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| Employers are often hesitant to give recommendations and may limit prior employment checks to the basic information. This service can be limited if not allowed to contact current employer, if past employer is out of business or cannot be located, or if employee was working through an agency. |
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What? |
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| This is a more in-depth reference check that seeks job duties, performance, salary strengths and weaknesses, eligibility for rehire, and other detailed information. |
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Why? |
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| Allows an employer to have a realistic assessment of a candidate from former employers. It promotes a better fit, confirms the hiring opinion and protects the expensive hiring investment. |
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Limits |
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| Although most employers would like references, few will give them due to concerns over legal liability. However, an employer should still attempt to obtain references in order to demonstrate Due Diligence. |
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