Background Checks at a New Level Michelle Martinez

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Eighty-six percent of respondents to a recent Jobspectrum.org poll on background checks say they "always" screen candidates for such things as criminal history and education verification. Fourteen percent of respondents say they "sometimes" do. Just think: the cost of making one bad hire could easily exceed the cost of properly screening dozens of applicants.

September 11 served as a wake-up call to many employers. Terrorist activity created a new sense of urgency for background checking, but so have other horrific events such as the Enron and WorldCom financial crises and kidnapping cases, says Lisa Gallagher, vice president of operations for HireRight, an Irvine, Calif., Internet-based employee screening firm. Before these events, negligent hiring motivated the process of weeding out potentially threatening employee behavior. Employers did not want to be responsible-and want to pay for-the behavior of an out-of-control employee who hurt or harassed fellow employees or customers.

Of course this is still true, but now, security and background investigation firms have reported expanding business as organizations look to rid the workplace of potentially threatening behavior-even in the form of existing employees. HireRight's revenue has doubled this year, and the firm is working with clients to do checks on even current employees. One client, with a workforce of 7,000, is conducting sex-offense checks on all employees to ensure the safety of their workers, as well as the clients that workers visit at their homes.

No one wants to hire a terrorist, or for that matter anyone who is dangerous, so many employers are broadening candidate-screening activity. Besides the routine checks, more employers are paying closer attention to information the federal government provides, such as comparing the names of prospective employees to names of people barred by the government due to criminal activity.

According to Peter LeVine, president of Peter LeVine Associates, Inc., a Boca Raton, Fla.-firm specializing in background checks, "doctored resumes that have been customized to meet an advertised job description are likely to survive the initial weeding out process, making it imperative that companies go through a thorough verification process before making a job offer." The most common inaccuracies, says Levine, are:

• Education—Claiming to have attended universities or earned degrees that they did not.
• Dates of employment that turn brief stints of employment into long job tenure.
• Job titles that are more impressive that the actual one.
• Specific accomplishments, such as job activities that can't be verified.
• Credentials, such as licenses, certifications or memberships that are no longer valid or don't allow the person to practice in another state.

After September 11, Eli Lilly & Co. conducted criminal-background checks of more than 7,000 employees of outside vendors, mainly food staff and construction workers. As a result, about 100 contract workers were banned from the company premises. According to union representatives, some of the banned individuals had committed felonies, such as burglaries, but most of the contract employers were guilty of misdemeanors.

According to LeVine, some states limit how employers consider misdemeanor infractions, and some states believe that misdemeanor infractions should not be considered by employers because they are never "job related." The following states limit employers from reviewing misdemeanor records, and Levine provides the details:

California: In cases in which probation has been successfully completed or otherwise discharged and the case has been judicially dismissed.
Hawaii: Employers cannot consider misdemeanor convictions for which a jail sentence cannot be imposed.
Massachusetts: Employers cannot inquire into or maintain records regarding any misdemeanor conviction where the date of such conviction or completion of incarceration—whichever date is later—occurred five or more years prior to the date of application for employment, unless the person has been convicted of any offense within the five years immediately preceding the date of application for employment.
Minnesota: Employers cannot consider misdemeanor convictions for which a jail sentence cannot be imposed.
New York: Employers may not consider misdemeanor convictions older than five years unless the person has also been convicted of some other crime within the past five years.

Joel Gray, director of human resources policies, plans and services for 6,500-employer Engelhard Corporation in Iselin, N.J., notes that Sept. 11 reinforced the necessity of background checks. Gray said that after the terrorist attacks, his employer-which makes specialty products used in the petrochemical, lawn-care and auto industries-conducted a thorough review of its hiring and screening procedures to make sure nothing was slipping through the cracks.

How prospective employees are checked out depends on the job duties of each specific position. Included in Gray's screening repertoire are criminal background checks, verifications of academic achievements, driving histories and immigration status.

At Shire Laboratories in Rockville, Md., background checks used to be done only on employees who worked in the controlled substances area of the facility. But three months ago, the company expanded the requirements to include all employees.

"Most divisions of Shire are doing it this way," says Jeff Hurdle, human resources manager for Shire Labs. "Even if the employees don't have direct access to sensitive areas, they could easily get access," notes Hurdle. "And if someone moves to another position, background checking everyone from the start, lessens the chance of discrimination and heightens safety.

"The terrorism attacks have heightened the sense of security," he says, "but Shire would have made the change to across-the-board background checks no matter what."

There are various stages of Shire's background checks. "We do the first basic check on social security number to make sure it comes up and provide candidates with a chance to correct if necessary," Hurdle said. "We also do a criminal history check, which goes back past seven years. We ask the county and state for seven years' worth of addresses, then we check each one."

Checking education and previous employment credentials is also part of the process, especially since many of the jobs require advanced college degrees. All phases of background checking are outsourced, using a web-based service, except for reference checks, Hurdle explains. "We make the calls for reference checks because by speaking with a person, you get a better feel for how an individual might handle stress or fit into the work culture."

Because many companies, including Shire Labs, will not provide professional reference information, Hurdle and his staff ask for personal references, which means the individual speaking about the candidate in question is not speaking on behalf of the former employer. The individual provides answers to questions and talks about work habits based on knowing the candidate as a colleague or professional in the workplace.

Outsourcing all other aspects of background checking is fast and relatively inexpensive, explains Hurdle. "To conduct an employment verification check, social security check, educational and county background check, it costs $100 per individual, and I receive all the information within three days of the request."

Many companies claim to be Web-based providers of pre-employment verification. But for some, that might just mean that the request form to do a background check is online, explains Gallagher. In some cases, "the faxing begins once the vendor receives the form," she says.

More importantly, look at the process the vendor uses to actually do the research, she says. "Delve deeply into the ongoing quality processes of the vendor you are considering. You want to ensure that the vendor continually tests the work performed for accuracy. Also, verify they are not using databases for criminal background checks," Gallagher says. "When I use the term 'databases', I mean systems that are updated periodically; you need up-to-the minute information from the courts."

Gallagher says there are other steps organizations can take to ensure accuracy of all background verifications, such as:

Establish a standard policy.
Establish a standard, mandatory background verification policy for your company. This will assure consistency in the type of verifications conducted and use of information in the employment decision. It also protects your organization by ensuring corporate-wide compliance to Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requirements.

Collect multiple forms of identification.
Insist on at least two forms of photo identification from the candidate. For example, while gathering information from the Employment Eligibility Verification (I-9 form), have the candidate supply a driver's license, as well as a passport.

Require complete data.
Insist on dates of employment and school graduation dates with month and year. Applicants will often omit jobs from their resume when they performed poorly or did not stay employed for a long time.

Perform regular audits.
Compare your active employee list with the background verifications provided by your verification partner to ensure that anyone who was hired without background verification has been screened. Also, conduct updated searches on existing employees on a regularly scheduled basis. Check for accuracy and consistency of employee information: Carefully evaluate all the information provided by the candidate. Compare and cross check data from resume, job application, background verification form and background verification report for consistency and accuracy.

Verify salary.
Often the most frequently misrepresented fact, insist on the applicant providing proof of their earnings for three previous years. If the previous employer will not provide salary information during the pre-employment screening process, this can be accomplished by having the candidate provide a pay stub or a W-2.

Observe the candidate.
Observe how the candidate responds to verification requests. Candidates that become indignant about requests for information may be trying to hide facts that will uncover negative information.

Michelle Martinez is a Leesburg, Va.-based writer specializing in recruitment, human resources and workplace management issues.