First Advantage releases employment screening report

Global Screening Benchmark Report. “With the latest economic trends pointing to a slow-down in global hiring and recent U.S. legislation limiting certain types of employment screening tools, employers of all sizes are challenged with staying in compliance with ever-changing regulations, while also getting the most qualified applicants in the door,” said Andy Macdonald, President & Chief Executive Officer of First Advantage.  “To successfully navigate such a dynamic environment, employers are actively seeking the best practices for hiring and screening that will help them ensure they are making the best decisions for keeping their workforces engaged, productive and safe.” The report provides employers with an overview of the employment screening results for Q1-Q2 2010 and Q1-Q2 2011 for many of the world’s leading employers and provides them a unique tool for evaluating their employment screening programs. Here are some key statistics from the report that we think are important to share:

• Applicant discrepancy rates in the United States are up in most screening categories, with Federal Criminal searches showing the highest percentage gain
• County Criminal search hit rates in the United States, the most utilized criminal screening tool, are up slightly in 2011 to 6.46% from 6.38% in 2010
• Substance abuse testing results have shown a decline in positivity rate to 2.56% for 2011, down from 2.61% in 2010
• Fingerprinting checks for pre-employment purposes show a 1.7% hit rate where the applicant was deemed unsatisfactory for employment
• Employment verifications show the highest hit rate in Asia Pacific where 66.4% of all discrepancies in the region are related to exaggerated or falsified past employment information

What does this tell us? These stats tell us that employment screening is definitely on the rise, with the down economy playing an important factor in this. Furthermore, applicants providing false information is also on the rise. An important reason to consider employment screening if it is not something you currently practice. Finally, the report tells us that drug and alcohol tests are contributing to an overall improvement in workplace drug and alcohol abuse. With numbers up in tests being performed, and positive results on the decrease, we see a clear correlation between the two. For more information on how you can protect your company with employment screening, contact Mind Your Business, Inc. A copy of the report can be found at www.fadv.com/Resource-Center/Benchmark-Reports/Global-Screening-Trends-Report-Q1-Q2-2010-/-Q1-Q2-2011/.]]>