Background checks are becoming a much more common part of the pre-employment process. Conducting background checks can help a company find and hire the right candidate in numerous ways. Unfortunately, there are companies out there that continue to refuse or just don’t do a background check on employees. This can put them at a huge risk of consequences from negligent hiring practices. This could even involve a lawsuit in certain circumstances. However, conducting thorough criminal background checks can help companies prevent themselves from falling into this position.

What Information is Provided From a Background Check?

The information provided in a background check can vary. It depends on how thorough it is and what type of information is requested by the employer. In general, a background check can offer a history of a person’s life. This includes employment, education, criminal records, vehicle and license records, credit history, and more. The only qualifier is that most background checks can only provide around 7 years of history. Much of the prior information drops off as time goes on. All this information can be incredibly valuable in picking out the right employee.

Prevent the Hiring of Those with Violence or Related Criminal History with Criminal Background Checks

One of the best ways that a criminal background check can help is by preventing the hiring of individuals with a violent history or those with related criminal records. Related criminal records refers to those who have committed crimes that are related to the purview of the business. For instance, if hiring a person in retail with multiple convictions for theft, you could just be asking for it to happen again. As for those with a violent history, they may end up harming someone at the new job. This can leave the company on the hook with a negligent hiring lawsuit because they did not do their due diligence.

Avoid Cases of Sexual Harassment

Sexual harassment is a massive issue, and it affects the victim and the company for whom they work. If a company were to forego a background check and hire someone with a history of sexual crimes, it could easily lead to this happening in the new workplace. Not only does this hurt the victim, but it also tarnishes the business. It could also once again land a company with a lawsuit for negligent hiring, as they did not take the time to find out about this person.

Performing Proper Criminal Background Checks

When performing a criminal background check, it is important to do it and use it in compliance with the law. Firstly, make sure that the same criminal background check is given to every employee. Secondly, make sure the information is not used to discriminate. For example, not hiring a person purely because they committed a small crime years ago that is unrelated is not ok. Some states have limitations for this. The information should only be used to refuse the job if the past conviction is clearly related or connected to the job that they are applying for.

Looking for Quality Criminal Background Checks?

If you are searching for a company that can provide thorough and quality criminal background checks, then we are here to help. Here at Soteria Screening Laboratories, we have partnered with the National Crime Search (NCS) to ensure that all relevant information is collected when performing a criminal background check. We are able to search a single state or across multiple states. Using the name and date of birth, we can locate felony and misdemeanor convictions from the past 7-10 years. If you have any questions, feel free to call us at (479) 695-2111.