Blog, Resources
Knowing the background of your applicant can be your greatest indicator of their ability to do their job. Unfortunately, criminals aren’t going to just give you their records or tell you where they committed their crimes. In fact, there are a few tricks that criminals employ to actively HIDE that information from you.
SOME OF THE TRICKS:
- Commit crimes after passing the background check.
- Give a False Name
- Move Around From State To State.
If you’re a client of SELECTiON.COM®, you’re in good hands. We’ve been in the background screening industry for over 25 years and offer all of the necessary tools to deal with the many different ways criminals try to hide records.
SELECTiON.COM® SOLUTIONS
Quarterly Watch®
SELECTiON.COM® owns the nation’s largest criminal database (Search America® Report) searching over 1 BILLION records. Once your applicant’s information is entered into our system, we will run our Quarterly Watch® product which includes Sex Offender Registry, Government Watch lists and Correction Records throughout the U.S. This way, you will be alerted as soon as possible with any additional records.
SSN Trace and Validation
First the SSN is ran through the SSA and then the SSN is traced which gives residence and identity history associated with the given SSN. If the name given by the applicant does not match the SSN Report, this can be a red flag to the client.
Criminal County Research
Fingerprinting and State Reports might be missing other criminal records. Depending on the offense, not all county records are reported to the state level. Furthermore, some records, such as public intoxication, disorderly conduct and misdemeanor drug offenses could be missed because the crime is a ticket offense that doesn’t require fingerprinting.
County research is the most accurate and up-to-date source of criminal history. Crimes are tried on a county level. SELECTiON.COM® researches the counties based of the SSN Trace Report, not where the applicant has told you they live.
Contact SELECTiON.COM® today to see how we can keep your workplace safe.
Blog
Just like the world around us, consumer needs are constantly changing. And because of that, companies need to keep up by understanding their client’s needs.
As consumers, we like to research and read reviews before making a purchase. In large part, that’s because clients like the easy access to social media to help them spread the word about their own service experiences and those of family, friends and in some cases relative strangers.
Of course, B2B customers can do the same thing through client testimonials. Talking to your clients and receiving feedback is a great way to help improve your business.
Here at SELECTiON.COM® we take pride in our Satisfaction Statement:
“What Separates true customer satisfaction from mere lip service is the willingness to put the SELECTiON.COM® customer FIRST in everything we do!”
SELECTiON.COM® Puts Our Customer FIRST in Everything We Do and we offer the following resources for our clients to help us by continuously rating our products and service:
- Client Customer Service Satisfaction Survey
- Live Chat ratings
- Client Research Survey
- Social Media following and client features
SELECTiON.COM® reviews and discusses these ratings and testimonials every Friday. We gather to discuss both our successes and our failures in our company wide meeting.
See what some of our amazing clients are saying about SELECTiON.COM® at https://selection.com/customer-feedback/ or follow us on social media for updates and client testimonials.
| Like us on Facebook
|
Follow us on Twitter
|
Follow us on LinkedIn
|
Follow us on Google+
|
“I get called often by other background check companies to switch. They always promise me a savings. Background checks with a company I consider a partner is invaluable. Background checks are NOT a commodity! Knowing what the limitations are changes it from a commodity to a service. I use SELECTiON.COM® because of their great service. Also, I must acknowledge LeAnn Bick is excellent to work with and is very responsive.”
Renee Fulton, President, Talis Group Inc.
“I’ve been using SELECTiON.COM® for nearly 10 years and it remains one of the best available. It’s easy to use and fast. I recommend SELECTiON.COM® without hesitation.”
Joe Kindt, Vice President of Human Resources, PECO Real Estate Partners
We love receiving feedback from our clients and we use the information to improve our services. You can fill out our client surveys on our website.
If you are a current or former client please fill out our Customer Satisfaction Survey at https://selection.com/client-survey/. We appreciate your responses!
Blog
Many companies throughout the U.S. not only run background checks on their applicants, but they also perform a drug screening.
There are many different types of drug panels that companies can run on potential employees, with a 10-panel urinalysis being the most common. This type of drug panel searches the top five street drugs (cocaine, heroin, meth, weed, PCP) and the top five prescription drugs (benzodiazepines, Quaaludes, methadone, propoxyphene, barbiturates). Other drugs may be added to or subtracted from this panel as specific requirements warrant.
Drug tests may be conducted using any number of sources including hair, saliva or urine.
Since medical marijuana is such a hot topic, questions often arise from our clients whether a positive marijuana drug test can be overturned. Also, with guidelines and regulations varying by state some confusion exists as to how marijuana results are to be interpreted in the first place.
Marijuana is classified currently as a Schedule I drug on a federal level, therefore a prescription cannot be written for it.
Clients also ask how Medical Review Officers (MRO) handle a drug test that is positive for marijuana.
When reviewing drug tests for marijuana, Medical Review Officers, will not overturn a positive result. If the donor claims to have a Medical Marijuana Card, they can contact the MRO and ask them to put this message on their report, but the report will still show “Positive for Marijuana.”
Some company policies allow the use of recreational or medical marijuana. In this case, the MRO will ask the donor to refer back to their company to discuss their specific policies.
Even if a city or state allows usage under local law, the MRO will not overturn the findings.
If, and only if, the donor does state that they would like this claim documented on their results, it would read as such:
“At the donor’s request, we are advising you that the donor claimed to have a
Medical Marijuana Card or Recommendation during their interview. We do not
consider Medical Marijuana in determining final results and no verification of the
donor’s claim was made.”
Please note, this does not apply to any federally regulated testing.
Most companies put a drug testing policy in place, which states whether or not they will allow medical marijuana claims. It is up to your company on how to proceed.
SELECTiON.COM® will work with your company to help you navigate applicant drug testing and the results.
Source:
D.R.S Medical Review Service, Statement of Procedures Regarding Donor Claims of Allowed
Recreational and/or Medical Marijuana Usage, 2017
Blog
Many employers today not only run a criminal history on their applicants, but prior employment verifications, as well. Running this type of report on your applicant can help you determine if you have chosen the right candidate for the position based on an honest assessment of past work experiences.
Especially since they know that their information is going to be verified by a third party, it also compels your applicants to be honest with you about their previous employers, dates of employment and positions held.
Although Employment Verifications are a key component in running a background check, some may take a while to complete.
Why, you ask? 
Here are some reasons why Prior Employment Verifications may take a little longer to complete.
- The client or applicant does not provide a phone number for the previous employer.
- When an applicant does not list a phone number for their former supervisor or employer, it may take additional time (and multiple requests) to track down a new number. Without a direct line to a supervisor, it may also increase the amount of time to work through the corporate offices.
- The supervisor’s name that was provided, no longer works for the company.
- If the supervisor listed is no longer employed with the company, we must contact HR directly. Contacting HR may take longer than talking to a direct supervisor, because HR has more requests and employee records. Plus, HR is less likely to provide complete or detailed information.
- The company is out of business.
- When an applicant lists a company that is out of business, it is almost impossible to complete a verification. Without direct access to former employees or management, the applicant may have to source personal contact information from previous supervisors.
- The previous employer asks for a “wet” signature release form from the applicant to be faxed to them.
- All applicants are asked to provide an electronic signature via our SELECTiON.COM® online dashboard, Fastrax Select®. However, some HR policies require a physical signature. In such cases, the applicant will be required to take the extra step of submitting a fax or email copy of a physically signed document.
- The prior employer only uses third-party providers.
- If an employer refuses to give verification over the phone and/or uses a third-party provider, SELECTiON.COM® must follow a different path to complete the verification. add third-party providers are usually fee-based and will add extra cost to the process, in addition to requiring approval from the applicant and the client.
- The employer no longer has the applicant in their archived system.
- Most employers don’t keep records forever. If an applicant lists a very old employment, we may be unable to verify due to the age of the record, or may not be able to spend the time necessary to source archive documents.
- Large corporations have several locations and the client/applicant only enters in the company name.
- Without detailed information, it makes it much harder to complete an employment verification. Most times if a specific location is not listed, we are forced to go through corporate HR. With large corporations that have multiple franchise owners this can be especially difficult.
At SELECTiON.COM®, our In-House Verification Department will help improve your workflow by making these calls for you after gathering basic, yet IMPORTANT, data (e.g. supervisor name, company name and phone number) prior to beginning the process.
SELECTiON.COM® will make the first attempt to reach the previous employer(s), as provided by the client or applicant, within 24 hours of the order date. Our logs notes are up-to-date and in real-time, so you can always see the exact status of your request.
The time it takes for us to complete an employment verification can differ depending on the circumstances. Here at SELECTiON.COM®, we pride ourselves on being prepared for any circumstance thrown our way.
Our employment verifications are an essential part of any background screening process and we do our best to complete them in a timely manner. The quickest way to complete any employment screening is to remind applicants to provide the most up-to-date and current information.
Check out: https://selection.com/employment-verification-check/ for more information on how we can help you complete employment verification today!
Blog
By Julie F. Burke
November 21, 2016
Knowing the background of your applicant can be the greatest indicator of their ability to do their job. There are many different types of background checks that can be run on your applicants and you want to make sure your background screening program is customized to be industry and job specific. Flexible and tailored background screening solutions will help provide a safe and secure workplace.
State and Federal Regulations
Certain states mandate specific background checks due to regulations. Typically these industries have employees or volunteers who care for or have custody of youth or the elderly. This would include school employees, day care, nursing homes and other organizations.
EEOC Regulations and Disparate Impact
The EEOC specifies that the nature of the job is more than just job title; evaluation of specific duties, essential functions, and environment all need to be considered. Even a seemingly neutral background check policy can have an adverse / disparate impact on certain protected groups. Title VII Civil Rights Act of 1964 prohibits employers from using neutral tests or selection procedures that have the effect of disproportionately excluding persons based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin, where the tests or selection procedures are not “job-related and consistent with business necessity.” This is called “disparate impact” discrimination.
Job Specific
Here are some key questions you should consider when developing your background check program.
- What is unique about your industry and the applicants you hire?
This is an important question so your background screening provider can create several different combined reports based on the positions within your company.
- Will the applicant be handling cash?
If so, you will want to include a Credit Report and Character Reference. This will help determine how they handle their own financing as well as others’ perceptions of your applicant.
- Will the applicant be working with children or elderly people?
As stated above, some states mandate fingerprinting applicants that work with these individuals. But, you also may want to add in a National Criminal Database or Sex Offender search, to cover all bases.
- Will the applicant be driving a company vehicle during work hours?
If your insurance does not cover this, it is appropriate and advisable to run a Motor Vehicle Report on your applicants. This way, you can protect your company by not having drivers with a suspended license and/or too many points off their license operating machinery or motor vehicles.
- Are past employment verifications/education verifications important for this position?
Organizations/Companies must uphold their credibility. For example, if you are hiring an applicant to teach at a University, you would want to make sure they have the appropriate degrees they specified in order to teach a class. Or, that a CPA actually worked for a certain accounting firm.
A quality background screening company should ask these types of questions in order to put together a background check that is industry specific. You don’t want to be stuck with just a “standard” background check that doesn’t cover all of the areas you really need.
SELECTiON.COM® provides the comprehensive and customizable screening solutions needed for your industry. Visit us today at https://selection.com/industry-specific-background-checks/ to see the industry solutions we already have in place.
NOTE: The contents of this article are not legal advice for your particular situation. You should neither act nor rely upon anything stated in this article without first consulting your own legal counsel.
