Going through the background check process as an employer or property manager can be long and exhausting. In a survey conducted by CareerBuilder.com, 49% of the 3,100 hiring managers surveyed had caught a job applicant fabricating some part of his/her resume.Keep these tips in mind to make sure you’re making the process easy on yourself, your applicant and the background check company.
Provide a Fully Completed and Legible Authorization Form: It is required by the law for employers, volunteer coordinators or property managers to have a signed authorization form from the applicant in order to run a background check. Make sure your authorization form includes current, former or other names used, social security number, date of birth, current address and any states lived in during the past 7 years. If you need a driver’s license report, make sure you have the driver’s license number and state it was issued in, or an image of the license that can be easily read. Many background check specialists have trouble with authorization forms that are illegible, incomplete, or have inaccurate information. These errors can cause delays in getting information processed and sent back for review.
If you’re unsure about the validity of your authorization form, ask your background check provider. They will have a template that you can use that contains the required legal statements and includes all the necessary information.
Ask Questions: If you see something on the report that you don’t understand, or there is information reported that you aren’t sure if you are allowed to know, ask your background check provider! A reputable company will have specialists that are trained and knowledgeable about the services they are providing. While they are required to disclose or not disclose certain information, mistakes can be made and they will work quickly and efficiently to ensure you are seeing the right information. The sooner you ask and verify, the quicker a mistake can be rectified and your decision about the applicant can be made.
If you find that the wrong report was selected, you can disregard the report and ask for a new one. This may seem frustrating at first, but it is always better to be safe and make a decision based on the correct information.
Provide Appropriate Adverse Action Information If Necessary: If you’ve received a background check that presents a reason to not hire an employee or rent to a tenant, there are required steps you must take. Adverse action benefits the employer or property manager, as well as the applicant, by providing a reasonable justification as to why the applicant isn’t fit. As the employer or property manager, you are required to give them a copy of their background check so that they can dispute any claims that may have caused the decision to be made. In these cases, many background check providers will have adverse action materials available to assist you with the process.
Screening applicants doesn’t have to be hard, and following these tips can help make the process quick and easy. Contact Background Check Express at (815) 235-3807 ext. 102 to get your background screening process on the right track.
By: Sarah Masa-Myers