More employers stepping up background checks

by Sharon Linstedt


The next time you apply for a job, there's a good chance your prospective employer will scrutinize your criminal and credit history along with the information on your resume.

Welcome to the age of intensified employment background checks. A combination of factors -- post 9/11 terrorism fears, growing incidence of workplace violence, increases in resume fraud and related liability concerns -- have caused employers big and small, public and private, to put prospective, and even current workers, under the microscope.

According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), in Alexandria , Vir., the number of companies that regularly do employee background checks has climbed by nearly 30 percent in less than a decade.

A recent SHRM survey of screening practices found 80 percent of companies conducted criminal background checks on potential staffers in 2003, up from 51 percent in 1996. The industry association also found the rou! ghly 35 percent performed credit checks, compared with 19 percent in its earlier survey.

More than a few private companies and public institutions have been left red-faced by hires that came with unknown baggage.

A high-profile example is last summer's discovery by Pennsylvania State University that it had hired an assistant professor with a triple murder conviction. The enormity of that oversight led to a bill before the Pennsylvania State Legislature that would require public and private colleges to perform criminal background checks for faculty positions.

Peter M. Vito, a veteran Buffalo private investigator whose staff conducts more than 1,000 employee background checks a year for area employers, said his clients are throwing a brighter light on prospective hires, as well as existing employees bucking for promotions.

"Everybody wants to know more than ever before," said Vito, who regularly uncovers "startling facts" about the subjects of his ! investigations.

"The level of resume fraud would probably surpr ise most people," said Vito, who has ferreted out fake doctors, accountants, architects and the occasional faux Navy Seal, as well as applicants attempting to hide felony convictions.

The increased attention of job seekers' pasts has also caused employment agencies to beef up their screening efforts. Adecco Employment, the world's largest employment agency with several offices in Western New York , has intensified the scope of its background checks.

"More of our clients routinely go beyond reference checks now," said Linda McDonnell, Adecco's area vice president. "We're being very upfront with applicants, urging them to be completely honest on their resumes and applications, because if they lie and don't pass the background check, we can't use them," McDonnell said.

As employers dig deeper into applicants' lives, its incumbent on job hunters to know their rights. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, if an employer bases a decision not to hire on negative ! information found in a background check, they are obligated to provide the applicant with the results and give them an opportunity to dispute the findings.

Details on employee rights can be found at the Federal Trade Commission's web site (www.ftc.gov). There are also private services that offer job applicants a way to search their own records to prescreen for possible issues and errors. Starting today, job hunters applying for positions via Yahoo's Hotjobs.com can precheck their histories files through ChoicePoint.

slinstedt@buffalonew.com.

Copyright (c) 2004 The Buffalo News