Magic Pot of Jobs

If you’re one of the millions of people currently in the midst of a job search, there are many things you should know about how background checks and criminal records can affect your chances of getting hired.

In today’s employment marketplace, the majority of employers in every industry are performing background checks on potential candidates. Background checks can help employers discover any false or negative information about a potential employee and save them from being targeted for negligent hiring lawsuits.

It used to be commonplace for companies to conduct background checks on job seekers applying for high-trust positions, such as those in schools, hospitals and the government. But today more companies hiring for all types of positions are conducting background checks on candidates.

In 2004, the Society for Human Resource Management found that 80 percent of companies conduct a background check on applicants before hiring, which is a 30 percent increase from 1996. There’s no doubt that number has increased since that time.

And rightfully so – as a 2009 study from American DataBank found that up to 30 percent of applications contain false material or information; 40 percent of the information on resumes is misrepresented; and 45 percent of applicants have a criminal record, bad driving record, worker’s compensation claim or bad credit history.

So what do you need to know about background checks and criminal records if you’re out there applying for jobs? Here are the top five things to keep in mind:

1. The law dictates what can and cannot be revealed about you – A myriad of information is accessible to employers, but legally the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act dictates what is and what is not allowed to be included in a background check.
2. What can an employer find out – Under the FCRA, an employer can access information about your: driving records, bankruptcy, property ownership, past employers, vehicle registration, education records, character references, military records, personal references, credit cards, court records, state licensing records, incarceration records, criminal records, workers’ compensation, medical records, drug test records and sex offender lists.
3. What information is hidden from an employer – Fortunately, the FCRA also prohibits employers from accessing some information, including: bankruptcies after 10 years; civil suits, civil judgments and records of arrest after seven years; paid tax liens after seven years; accounts placed for collection after seven years; and other negative information, except criminal convictions, after seven years.
4. Technology is changing the way background checks are conducted – With the explosion in popularity of social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, employers now have access to more information about you than ever before. Even though there is a debate underway as to whether or not it is ethical for employers to research you via these sites, there is no law against it, and several studies have found that doing so is now a mainstream practice among many companies. Because of that, it’s important to be conscious of everything you post on these sites.
5. Be honest and you won’t have anything to fear – The most important thing to keep in mind when applying for jobs is just to be honest. If you lie on your resume or application, or if you post incriminating things on your social networking sites, chances are a potential employer is going to find out. It’s a lot easier to be honest up front than have to explain why you lied later on.

Tags: Background checks and criminal records

This entry was posted on Monday, February 15th, 2010 at 3:06 pm and is filed under Background checks, Job Search. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.