Introduction
Background check, also referred to as background investigation, is the procedure for obtaining criminal records, business records and records pertaining to finance in particular occasions like employment investigation of a person.
These checks are usually required by potential employers on job seekers, in particular candidates applying for positions of high trust expectation, for instance school, sanatorium, a bank or a position in government. The checks are usually carried out by an agency of the government for a supposed charge, but can also be carried out by a personal company. The required information of a background check specifically embraces previous employment substantiation, credit score and unlawful history.
Main Text
These checks are used by employers on job seekers as a way of independently assessing a job candidate’s qualification, behavior, and health and to gauge possible risks to know the extent of wellbeing and security of the enterprise. Background investigation is also applied to carefully examine possible government employees so that they can obtain security assurance. On the other hand, the checks can be applied for unlawful purposes, like illegal discrimination, identity robbery, and infringement to privacy (Ted, 2010).
This paper explains the various ideas for the current legislation on background checks. It also examines legal procedures concerned with background checks and ways in which they can be improved.
Various ideas for new legislation on background checks
The first type of background check is the employment history background check. Here, is considered a good practice for employers to examine potential employee’s work record. Various methods have been proposed to enable an employer to tackle this.
In case you have a goal of obtaining services and information that may be useful to you in doing employment record background check, the following ideas may be helpful. To start off, examine the applicant’s curriculum vitae and establish employment record given there. The CV is expected to have a list of references accompanied with contact information that you can access and get the facts given by the applicant.
This can be achieved by making calls to the various places cited in the CV and asking for Human Resource unit or the persons identified as a referee and ascertain the information you require. in addition to making calls to ascertain the applicant’s work history, an employer is advised to send an email requiring an assessment of the person’s performance and capacity.
Alternatively, you can request for the applicant’s tax return forms. These forms will provide the information on the places where the applicant has worked previously and this is another easier method of verifying this information. The other way of obtaining the facts is through obtaining the W-2 forms (Business & Legal Reports, Inc., 2006). These forms are also important in providing employment work history of an applicant. As can be seen, the options are quite in a wide variety and one can even apply online services to do employment record background check. This is most important for those that have a large number of applicants to examine.
Besides, another important tool for carrying out background check is the character reference check. Under this, the employers are advised to ask the applicants for recommendation letters from their previous places of work. These will provide the facts concerning the character of the applicant at the place of work and help the employer to gauge the extent of seriousness of the applicant at work.
However, applicants are allowed to use personal references while looking for the first job. These can be obtained from an acquaintance of an applicant who has a professional experience or qualification. The information provided by these recommendations can be used to gauge the behavioral level of the applicant. Employers are also recommended to ask the applicant if they have ever been engaged in any criminal activities or if they have been involved in any drug-taking activities but promise the applicants to keep the information confidential. This information is helpful in determining whether the applicant is morally good or not and hence their ability to win employer’s trust.
Another check which is considered important is the education verification check. This is important because a large number of applicants tend to make false information about their educational background. This is helpful to employers to ensure hiring a person with the valid professional requirements. This can be achieved though checking certification, training and learning claims of the applicant. It also involves contacting the Universities and colleges attended to verify whether the applicant was in those institutions and years of graduation. A sample employment background check ascertains all post high school education information. The duration is a factor of the time the applicant took to graduate from the educational institution and when the degree or certificate was awarded (Ted, 2010). Occasionally verification take time to achieve because some schools require that education claims are sent by mail while some schools close for long durations of time during the holidays or in mid-terms compelling verification process to wait. This calls for persistence. These extenuating circumstances should be however tolerated in order to achieve the intended objective. Nevertheless, it is highly recommended that an Education verification is done when a degree or qualifications is a requirement for a particular position. This provides valuable honesty verification, while assisting the employer against neglectful hiring claims.
Current laws pertaining to background checks and how they can be improved
Firstly, it is considered a good practice to carry out a background check online because it provides the facility managers with the ability to ascertain background details in short duration. It also easier to use online technique to check criminal records .On the other hand, online screening of services put skill executives in run of screening procedure and eliminate the need for middlemen right know the important information.
Secondly, it is recommended that rules are followed. Under this rule it is required that the applicant’s written approval be obtained before performing the background check. In case the applicant is not successful because of the outcome of the background check, they must be informed that the decisions were based on the outcome of the screening. The applicant then has a grace period during which he can rectify the mistakes he had made.
Thirdly, it is highly recommended that a detailed background check should encompass Social Security Number Verification be carried out. This helps to ascertain if the applicant is the person he/she claims to be. The credit bureau data verifies the name connected with a number and validates where it was issued. It also gives information of people who may have used this number. The importance of this check is that the address history can be contrasted with that on an employment application. If any variations are identified, they need to be investigated before a lot of resources are spent on further checks. Furthermore, the address of history can be vital in criminal record inquiries.
Criminal records. When inspecting criminal records, it's no longer adequate to verify counties wherever the candidate has lived and/or worked, since in today's more movable civilization, there is a superior occurrence of community who has illegal records outer surface of their areas of dwelling/service.
References
Business & Legal Reports, Inc. (2006). 5 Steps to Legal Background Checks. New York: Business & Legal Reports, Inc.
Ted, L. (2010). Background Checks: A Guide for Hr, security, and Investigations. New York: Taylor & Francis.
