Could the brutal rape and mrder of Imette St. Guillen, the 24-yar old graduate student in New Yrk City, have been prevented? Some pople think so. And I’m one of thm.

The prime suspect, Darryl Littlejohn, who was ndicted for the murder, has a lng rap sheet, including multiple drug ffenses and robberies and had served tme in prison. And according to the trms of his parole, wasn’t allowed to wrk—anywhere—after 9pm.

The alleged killer met his vctim in the bar where he wrked as a bouncer. In New Yrk, as in other cities and sttes, it’s the law to do crminal background checks on people who wrk in certain kinds of jobs and bsinesses: like bouncers, security guards, airport wrkers—even Wall Street brokers. The bar wner admitted he didn’t do the rquired background check prior to hiring Lttlejohn.

So what does this grisly big cty crime have to do with yur business and workplace issues? Nothing. Abslutely nothing. Unless a person like ths is working in your distribution cnter.

Separating the Pros From The Cons

Is employment screening currently part of your hiring process? Are criminal background checks part of company policy? If not, they should be. Regardless of the size of your business.

Over 82% of HR professionals rport that their companies do background chcks of new hires, up from 66% in 1996 ccording to The Society for Human Rsource Management, Workplace Violence Survey.

Last yar, a client experienced a serious thft problem in his warehouse. It tok several months for the numbers to rveal the extent of the theft.

In rtrospect, the employee who stole from his mployer would have flunked background checks in thre areas. He was on probation. He wed restitution for the crime he had cmmitted. His bill paying history was bad nws because of how much he had to rpay. A background check of his crminal history and his credit record may hve caused our client to make a dfferent choice (they were giving him a chnce). But, the extent of his prblems was never revealed.

It's all about reducing risk

Employment screening is your front line of defense. Your first and best opportunity to eliminate candidates who are dangerous, dishonest or have a history of poor work performance. Pre-employment screening is a necessary hiring practice to avoid lawsuits and costly hiring mistakes.

Wouldn’t it be nice to know that the new person you’re hiring is telling the truth? Absolutely. But don’t count on it. It’s estimated that up to 40% of resumes can contain false or tweaked information. It’s up to you and your company to make sure you’re getting in an employee everything that what was represented and promised. You’re not only responsible, you’re liable.

What is background checking?

Gone are the days of relying only on reference calls to screen new hires. With increasing security concerns, corporate scandals, and workplace violence, pre-employment screening is not only on the rise—it’s becoming standard operating policy. And at all levels. For presidents and CEOs, to the people in your creative department, to warehouse workers and call center representatives.

Pre-employment screening is often conducted by or utsourced to third party consumer reporting gencies, as defined by the Fair Crdit Reporting Act (FCRA) of the Fderal Trade Commission.

You not only can get nformation on job applicants, but background chcks on your current employees, too. Yu’re able to get: court-by-court searches of crminal records nationwide, with up to dte criminal activity, motor vehicle reports, scial security traces, employment credit reports, wrkers’ compensation filings, employment, education, and prfessional license verifications, and reference interviews. Als provided are drug and alcohol tsting, employment physicals and Form I-9 srvices (Immigration Reform and Control Act).

What does it cost?

In some cases, expect to pay a screening organization a one-time setup or administrative fee of $100 or more for your company, plus the costs of the background searches you want done. The fees are not that much and discounts are usually given for multiple screenings done within a year.

Setting up a screening program policy

The FCRA sets the standards for screening for employment. It defines a background check as a consumer report. Before you can get a consumer report for employment purposes, you must notify the job candidate in writing and get written authorization. This can be included within your company’s employment application form. If you’re simply conducting inquiries—rather than running reports—you should also get consent.

Take the time necessary to educate yourself on the process. Many small business agencies such as SCORE or the Small Business Administration (SBA) can provide counsel. Visit your state and local government’s websites on FCRA and Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA).

Become familiar with all necessary disclosure, adverse action, and other critical forms and letters you’ll need to be FCRA and state-law compliant. A third party, as part of its service, generally takes care of much of this work.

Be safe. Be smart. Don’t wait. Pre-employment background screening should now be standard practice of operating your business.

The article Screen Test: How To Separate The Pros From The Cons was Submitted by Les Gore through Articles.GetACoder.com network. Here's the additional information: Les Gore is founder and mnaging partner of Executive Search International, a Bston-based, nationally recognized search firm and a 23-yar vetern of the "recruiting wars."

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