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Articles of Interest Advocating
Thorough Background Checks

The following articles may be of interest to employers seeking information about thorough background checks.

Criminal Background Checks Incomplete: How convicted felons can slip through safety net

MSNBC
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/7467732/
Points of Interest:
  • Spotty participation by the nation's 3,100 county courts, along with a hodgepodge of data formats, make national crime databases vastly incomplete.
  • The national databases have a 41 percent error rate.
  • There is only one way to conduct a thorough criminal background check: combine computer-based nationwide searches with old-fashioned in-person visits to county courthouses that house criminal record information.

ROI of Background Screening

HRM Management Article
http://www.hrmreport.com/pastissue/article.asp?art=270214&issue=203(membership login required)
Important Points:
  • Even hard-to-quantify business areas like Human Resources need to prove the value of best practices.
  • Background screening is not only necessary, but delivers real value to the bottom line.
  • Very few business expenses can generate the high ROI values that background screening can.

History of the Screening Industry

http://www.napbs.com/images/pdf/HistoryBackgroundScreening.pdf
Important Points:
  • More and more organizations more closely scrutinize potential employees and volunteers.
  • Background screening is no longer just for sensitive or high-level positions but also for minimum wage workers.

Beyond Pre-Hire Background Checks: Post-Hire Screens Become the Norm

SHRM Staffing Management Library
http://www.shrm.org/ema/library_published/nonIC/CMS_020543.asp (membership login required)
Key Point:
  • Since things can change so quickly, many employers are realizing that post-hire or recurring employee background screening should be conducted at regular intervals for certain job categories or employment situations in order to mitigate business risk.

More Background Screening Yields More ‘Red Flags’

SHRM Staffing Management News July 2007
Points of Interest:
  • The percentage of "hits," or red flags, showing up in background checks is increasing as more companies are opting to conduct more complete background checks for larger segments of their job applicant pools and current employees.
  • More thorough background checks include more complete data. Employers are digging deeper than ever before.
  • Companies are screening all employees, not just managers. Companies also are increasingly screening temporary employees, vendors and consultants, all of whom could also pose a threat to their business.

Criminal Background Checks for Employment Purposes

SHRM Legal Report July/August 2006
http://www.shrm.org/hrresources/whitepapers_published/CMS_000379.asp(membership login required)
Important Point:
  • The ideal background check is accurate, comprehensive, consistent, timely and, of course, legal. Coordinating these factors is expensive and time-consuming, but getting the best background check possible is too important to let budgetary or time constraints compromise the process.

Criminal Background Checks: A Checklist of the Pros and Cons

SHRM Information Center
http://www.shrm.org/hrresources/whitepapers_published/CMS_000379.asp(membership login required)
Key Points:
  • There are significant rewards to doing Criminal Background Checks.
  • There are significant limitations and restrictions employers need to be aware of when conducting Criminal Background Checks


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