background checks
Superstore Target bans the box in their employee application process
The initiative, part of a widespread “Ban the Box” movement across the country, calls for employers to wait until a potential employee is being interviewed or has a provisional job offer before inquiring as to whether they have a criminal past. The idea is that ex-offenders will have a better chance at getting a job if…
Read MoreAn employer’s guide to the background check process
Basic requirements Running a background check isn’t as easy as just pulling up the information on the web. There are regulations set forth by the Fair Credit Reporting Act that require employers to get written authorization before they are able to get the report. There are certain do’s and don’ts of background checks that come…
Read MoreSeattle becomes latest city to “Ban the Box”
Ordinance 124201 seeks to “increase public safety and job assistance through reducing criminal recidivism and enhancing positive reentries to society by prohibiting certain adverse employment actions against individuals who have been arrested, convicted, or charged with a crime; and adding Chapter 14.17 to the Seattle Municipal Code.” The legislation will prohibit employers from automatically excluding individuals…
Read MoreDemand for criminal background checks at record level in Rhode Island
according to the Providence Journal. “Want to work as a massage therapist, schoolteacher, motorcycling instructor or caretaker in a nursing home? Need to bring your family to a homeless shelter? If the answer is yes, you’ll need to visit a police department or the attorney general’s office…where employees in the Bureau of Criminal Identification will…
Read MoreEmployers: You need to screen your applicants with certified background checks
Not all background checks—or background check agencies—are made equal. As companies grow, they need more qualified people to fill new & existing job roles. But how do you “qualify” an applicant? Any applicant can be screened through a background check, but not all background checks or background check agencies are made equal. If you’re the…
Read MoreWill the Navy Yard Shooting revive the firearm background check debate?
I mourn those killed today at the Navy Yard in Washington and send my thoughts and prayers to those families grieving the loss of loved ones. There are reports the killer was armed with an AR-15, a shotgun and a semiautomatic pistol when he stormed an American military installation in the nation’s capital and took…
Read MoreStaff testing during the hiring process – is it important?
As an employer, one of the most important aspects of the hiring process is staff testing, which consists of two main parts: pre-employment background checks and drug screening. Why are they important? The United States Department of Labor estimates that of the 17.2 million drug abusers in the US, 12.9 million were employed either full…
Read MoreSnowden's background check found to be inadequate
National Counterintelligence Executive Frank Montoya, who led the review, said the security check by a private contractor “did not present a comprehensive picture of Mr. Snowden,” reports The Wall Street Journal, which obtained a copy of the review documents. The review found that the US Investigations Services (USIS) of Falls Church, Va., the largest security…
Read MoreHouse bill seeks accuracy in FBI background checks
50 percent of the information provided in FBI background checks may be inaccurate, a bill has been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives – ‘H.R. 2865 – Fairness and Accuracy in Employment Background Checks Act of 2013’ – seeking to provide safeguards and improve the current system. Sponsored by Representative Robert C. “Bobby” Scott (D-VA),…
Read MoreEmployers Beware: Failure to truly understand Fair Credit Reporting Act background checks could mean a lawsuit coming your way
For example, the carrier Swift Transportation has found itself back under the legal microscope recently with a class action lawsuit being filed against it in a Virginia federal court. The lawsuit claims the company failed to tell more than 10,000 people who applied for jobs they can access the same information as the company for…
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