BEST PRACTICE #6 FOR PROPER USE OF CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECKS IN HIRING
Today we continue our recommendations based on a recent paper published by representatives from the National H.I.R.E. Network, the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and the National Workrights Institute, called Best Practice Standards: The Proper Use of Criminal Records in Hiring, with a look at point #6:
REPORT CONVICTIONS ONLY WHEN FULL NAME AND ONE OTHER IDENTIFIER MATCH
When Best Practice Standards refers to “other identifiers” there are only three available to an employer and sometimes only two. Because there are many people with the same first and last names, it’s always important to get a middle name whenever possible. The other identifiers are Date of Birth, Social Security Number, and a permanent home address.
The sad part, especially for the job seeker, even more so than the employer is very few, if any, courts will release social security numbers anymore because of the danger of identify theft. In order to make sure that a candidate for employment is not the person a court check turns up as a convicted felon a Social Security Number is the most failsafe way to distinguish the candidate from someone else who just happens to have the same exact name. Employers are, therefore, left with full name and date of birth as the most accessible identifiers.
The bottom line is that care and a keen eye to detail are required on every search. Collecting the information on applicants is only half the task. Determining what is reportable and useable by hiring managers requires an added level of expertise that Barada Associates brings to the equation.