Over the last six months I have paid more attention to some of the pre employment procedures some of my clients and colleagues follow. In the past, I have not observed many small IT companies running criminal background checks (or even checking references for that matter). Recently though, I have heard more and more stories about companies declining to make job offers or withdrawing job offers based on the results of these background checks.
The most common offenses that I hear of are related to driving such as excessive or unpaid moving violations or driving under the influence. It is interesting the different perspectives that owners have on these types of activities. On whole, I find that most owners will not hire people with a DUI on their record. I have to say that I do agree with this position. Not on the basis that this is a good or bad person (I will leave that to your own personal ethics) but rather the liability that you potentially take on when you hire someone with that history. Some would say it speaks to judgement and maturity, others would say it is a character issue. I would strip these issues away and make your decision based on pure legal logic.
Example that I’ve heard from an attorney in Washington state:
You have an applicant that you learn has a poor driving record and a past DUI. You allow that person to join your company in a position that requires a great deal of driving to perform their duties at remote locations. That employee gets into a serious car accident during the course of their duties. The other party decides that as the employer, you have the deepest pockets so they pursue you in a law suit. When it is discovered (and the attorney will discover everything) that you knew of this prior driving history and still allowed them to drive on your behalf, you will have a very painful experience ahead of you. While not guaranteed that your liability will be even greater, it will certainly reduce your ability to defend yourself and your company.
My recommendation is that you establish your hiring guidelines before having to make a decision on the spot when a background check reveals something. My experience has shown that companies that have policies that they follow, not only reduce their liabilities but also reduce the stress of making the “right” decision when they experience a new situation.
Using an outside firm to perform reference checks, criminal background checks, drug tests, driving records, etc, is highly advisable so that the process happens every time in a consistent fashion. Speak to your insurance company or ask others in your peer groups for recommendations. I’ve become very impressed with Administaff’s services based on the feedback from my clients.
So, get responsible, stop hoping that everything will be just fine, define your own personal level of comfort with people’s histories, and make decisions based on your predefined thresholds.
Don’t be a lurker, post your stories and experiences. I know you have some horror stories; let’s hear them!
