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December 7, 2021

Is that Santa or A Sex Offender? Conducting Thorough Background Checks

HR is tasked with making sure the company runs smoothly, positions are filled, and employees are productive and engaged. Hiring the wrong person can create havoc in the workplace and even make it unsafe. Conducting thorough background checks can minimize this risk.

Naughty Santa

Not All Guys in a Red Suit and White Beard Are Santa!

It’s easy to be swayed by a smooth talking, well-dressed applicant with a slick CV. This can lead to making big hiring mistakes that can end up devastating a company!
While it would be nice to think that all attractive, well-spoken, smartly dressed people were good and honest, that is not the case. Some of them could be hiding criminal convictions behind their bright smiles and glib answers.
It's important to have a background screening process in place for every applicant!
Currently, there are over 700,000 registered sex offenders in the United States. Men, women, old people, young people, smart people, and attractive people are all represented. Sex offenders are from all walks of life. It is not just the creepy old man on the corner of the street or the long-haired guy in the park with the panel van. AND sex offenders are 4 times more likely to be arrested for a second offense as other members of the general population.

Ho! Ho! Ho! Or No! No! No!

1: Change your way of thinking. Play a more objective role in determining if the applicant is a criminal. Don’t disregard the need to check a person’s background because they are nice looking or seem sweet.
2. Add set hiring practices. Depending on the position, have a set background screening process for EVERY applicant.
3. Practice consistency. Be sure that every person involved in hiring is educated on and aware of the policy. Establish rules and create a commitment for checking a person’s background before hiring them.

Use More Than Santa’s List to Screen Your Applicants

An effective tool that helps in uncovering sex offenders is the National Criminal Database Search. This is a criminal search that holds millions of recorded crimes across the country in a database.
This search can expose the travelling criminal. In many cases, sex offenders will travel outside of their area of residence to commit their crimes. A regular county or state criminal search would not uncover these convictions, as the state or county of the conviction would not be searched.
The National Criminal Database Search may uncover these crimes, because it can pull information from places that were not targeted to search.
Another way the National Criminal Database Search helps in uncovering sex offenders is by running a social trace. This basically reports every address that is associated with that person’s social security number. So, if a person has omitted a place of residence where a crime was committed, this search could possibly uncover it.

Note: When you create your background screening policy, gear it toward the position for which you’re hiring. Thoughtfully consider if the search is relevant and fair for the position you’re trying to fill.

Why have we let Santa come down our chimneys for decades without checking him out first? Implement consistent background screening processes that are relevant to the position sought. Building a complete picture of your job candidate, beyond their appearance and application, is essential in choosing the right person to join your team and keeping your company safe and productive.

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