Doing a background check on employees before hiring them is a critical step for most companies. One bad hiring decision can lead to the failure of many small to mid-sized businesses. After all, big expenses are spent in the process of finding, interviewing, and training new candidates. Being able to screen those candidates before hiring them can reduce recruitment costs by helping you identify the new hires that are more likely to harm your operations.
Background checks are also very effective in protecting your business from incompetent people who may work under your brand and cause you to lose money. That’s why they’re essential and are conducted by businesses during recruitment. Here is how you can easily perform effective background checks on your potential employees.
Create A Policy for Background Checks
A background check policy allows your business to document the hiring process and make your intentions clear to new applicants. You can partner with another company to conduct your background checks. A clear policy in place will justify why your business may extend job offers or simply turn them down. It will also protect your business from any future legal implications from happening. Using your background check policy, you should be able to inform your candidates of all the needed details and answer all their frequently asked questions concerning the way your company performs these checks. The policy should explain the legal obligations behind this practice for you as an employer. It should include guidance in the case of disqualifying an applicant for their previous criminal records.
Outsource the Process
It is completely possible for companies and employers to conduct background checks on their own, however, to ensure accuracy and reliability, other alternatives are considered. For instance, many companies partner with providers who specialize in background screening for recruitment purposes. Of course, these companies have to confirm that they follow the standard employment guidelines and regulations. DBS professionals working at https://www.enhancedcheck.co.uk/ suggest that reputable companies will also provide accurate data that is up to date and in line with regulations. For example, you can’t just collect background information about potential employees from web pages and searchable public record data. You can end up being held liable for employee misconduct through negligent hiring and negligent retention.
Only Pay for Needed Information
Doing background checks on your employees may mean working with a company that does these checks professionally. It could also mean that some companies may encourage you to purchase all available information about potential employees when in reality, you only need a few details about their criminal record. As a business, you may never need to obtain all this information unless you’re trying to know all about a specific employee’s background. Because these services are costly, make sure the information you buy is absolutely necessary for your role as an employer. You don’t need more than a criminal background check and a reference check in most cases, so make sure you’re not overpaying for your background check policy.
Make It Job-Related
Employers can choose the screening checks or processes based on the type of job they are hiring for. This is mainly aimed to lower screening costs and help companies finish the process in a timely fashion. Traditionally, a company would 
start by running basic checks such as verifying the identity, checking the national criminal database, and running basic national sex offender checks. After these basic checks are out of the way, your company can proceed with checking credit history, courthouse records, education and employment history, and other essential records for the job. This means that the rest of the background checks are determined based on the job description and position in the company.
Obtain Your Candidates’ Consent
Before conducting your employment background checks, you’ll be legally asked if you’ve obtained your employees’ confirmation or consent to run these checks. This should be mentioned or addressed clearly in a separate authorization form from the employment application. It should list the type of screens that are going to be conducted in addition to an explanation of how the job offer can depend on the results of these checks. You should also make sure that your new hires receive a summary of their rights to dispute inaccurate or false results on the background checks.
Hiring new workers without running the needed background checks is a risky move that any business should avoid. Employers are always liable and responsible for their workers’ behaviors and wrongdoing. This means that the carelessness or lack of responsibility displayed by any of your employees can cost your business a lot of money. So it’s essential to perform the relevant screens and checks before offering jobs to any new candidates to protect your business from future legal ramifications.
