Background Checks & Employment Screening
Our Online Services Include:
Criminal Records Searches
Driver's History
Credit Reports
Sex Offender Searches
Employment & Education Verifications
Easy to Use. Run Background Checks fast and accurately.
No Downloads. No Membership Fees. Just great service at a low cost.
Going Whole Hogg $8.6 Million Verdict in Wild Pig Accident
A jury recently awarded $8.6 Million to a Monterey County motorcyclist who was severely injured after striking a wild pig. The jury found that State highway officials were responsible for the Plaintiff’s injuries. They ruled that the officials ignored evidence that a stretch of highway was dangerous because wild pigs were crossing it and the State failed to take appropriate action to resolve the danger.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the man was confined to a wheelchair.
If you’ve been wondering how our California State has gotten info this budget crisis, look no further than some of these jury payouts. Let’s assume the complaint is valid and the State neglected to do anything about the danger, such as posting wild pig crossing signs, or limiting the speed limit in the area to allow a speeding cyclist to avoid a fleeing pig. Even if the State is correctly at fault, is it really worth 8.6 Million? How could the victim incur this much damage from the accident, or was some of it punitive? If so, why so much? How about forcing the state to spend 8.6 million on improving the highway conditions?
And finally, we wonder about the fate of the poor wild pig. This was San Francisco; wasn’t anybody standing up for the rights of the pig? Where did he end up? Into the meat grinders at Buena Vista Restaurant?
Establishing an Electronic Form I-9 Account with E-Verify
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) offers electronic employment eligibility verification through their E-Verify program. Some background screening companies, such as Corra Group, based in Los Angeles, is a designated agent and will help you establishing your electronic employment eligibility account. Additionally, Corra Group will integrate your electronic I-9 form with your background check screening program, allowing you to reduce double entry typing and eliminate paper forms.
Online vs. Paper?
If it wasn’t confusing enough, the USCIS notes that the current Form I-9 expires 06/30/09. Today they issued a press release indicating that the form is still valid beyond June 30th. They are requesting an extension from the OMB (office and management and budget) and until that occurs the form is still valid. At some point they will have an updated form and will release it for employers to download. When you sign up with a designated agent like Corra Group, their electronic form will automatically update with the new form, so there is no need to worry about expiration dates.
If you need a paper version of the current I-9 form, you can download it here
Financial Job Seekers optimism highlights need for deeper background checks
According to a recent survey by one-wire.com, about 75% of financial job seekers believe they will find employment within the next six months, which isn’t surprising considering the ”Type A” personality necessary to succeed at most financial services positions. This optimism might be shortsighted according to another study by Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, which indicates the venture capital industry will have to shrink – possibly by half — if it wants to be profitable.
Hopefully the financial industry continues to attract the best and the brightest. After scandal comes reform, and hopefuly the reformation of the financial services industry will include a deeper background check by financial employers. A more thorough candidate screening will help determine which job candidates do not cause further damage to the financial services industry. Most employers should continue to check candidates for federal criminal records as well as FINRA broker license checks.
Contact us at safeguardscreening.com
Healthcare Screening Services – the FACIS Search
Screening healthcare workers for contracts sometimes requires more than just drug screening and criminal records searches. Occasionally some facilities may require you to implement a healthcare sanctions search. This search including the OIG/GSA database, or the office of Inspector General and General Services Administrations sanctioned list and disciplinary actions for healthcare workers and others barred from working in the United States. Some contracts may require you to search further and include the FACIS Search.
FACIS stands for “Fraud and Abuse Control Information System” which provides information on sanctioned individuals working in the healthcare field. There are three levels of Facis. Level 1 combines the databases of the OIG and GSA, Level 2 adds a list of federal disciplinary action information from multiple agencies, and level 3, includes additional disciplinary actions from licensing and certification agencies across the country.
Applicant Tracking Software as a Service SAAS
As your company grows, you should consider integrating your applicant tracking software with your background screening system. Operating independantly, these two Human Resources business processes require data entry for applicant data and management oversight. When you integrate these processes, you reduce or eliminate the data entry by your human resources department. Applicants will apply for your jobs online, complete an electronic job application and electronically sign a release form allowing your firm to conduct a background screening should you decide to clear the candidate for potential hire. Your dashboard will allow you to review background screening information in real time and make a decision. You can issue denials with a click of a button.
Career Center
You can create a online career center for your firm. Take your organizational chart and upload job requirements for each position. As position become open in your firm, post a job based on your requirements, or modify your requirements. As your org chart changes, store and modify these changes online.
The ease of integration will save your administrative time, cut costs, and attract savvy employees.
Confusion about rapists Background Check
If you have been following the story in the Los Angeles Times, you would have read about the convicted rapist who was fired by Los Angeles County and then rehired again.
Beasley was convicted in 1992 of raping two women under color of authority while working as an on-duty Los Angeles police officer.
today the paper came out stating that the Medical Staffing Firm, Mediscan Staffing Services, said the candidate passed their background check which included “a seven-year criminal and sex offender check, fraud/OIG check, license, education and employment screenings, in addition to checks on the national terrorist database.”
When you think about it, the candidate’s conviction occurred longer than seven years ago, so naturally he would come back with a clean criminal record if he hadn’t been convicted of a crime since 1992. So why would a company only search back 7 years? Because that the policy of the FCRA, the fair credit reporting act. What is so confusing about this situation is that the Beasley doesn’t appear to be a sex offender, and doesn’t appear on any sex offender registries. Most sexual offenses become sex offender status which is a lifelong designation or least longer than seven years. Why isn’t beasley a sex offender? We find it interesting that the conviction occurred while he was working as Los Angeles Police Officer.
Nevada DPS releases inaccurate background check information
And you thought you were going to get the job right? Mercury News has an article about how the Nevada Department of Public Safety inaccurately reported back minor misdemeanor crimes such as DUI records on thousands of individuals. Apparently most of the searches were for Gambling-related companies, that probably must have a high standard for criminal history background checks in order to meet federal and state compliance.
The agency used a list of crimes not found in state laws to find that some applicants shouldn’t be hired. The list, which included misdemeanor DUIs and other minor crimes, was in a bill considered but not approved by the 2003 Legislature.
The article touches upon the subject of application notifcation and whether the job applicants received an adverse action letter based on the background check.
Capt. Phil O’Neill, who runs the division, said he didn’t know of anyone who lost a job over the mistake, adding they might not have been hired for other reasons.
This response sounds like code speak for “we found somebody better qualified” in which the company wouldn’t have to issue an adverse action letter.
adverse action letter
FCRA
background checks
Nevada DPS
Nevada Criminal Records
Opposition to E-Verify mounts in face of raids
An interesting detail about the high profile raid of Howard Industries, in which 595 suspected illegal workers were arrested, is Howard claims they were using the E-Verify electronic I-9 compliance system established by the federal government to help employers remain in compliance with federal labor laws. In addition, Swift Co, which was raided in December 2006, also claims they were using E-Verify before they were raided.
Apparently SHRM has established a organization called HR Initiative for a Legal Workforce which has criticized the effectiveness of E-Verify.
E-Verify, which checks information from I-9 forms against Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration databases, cannot tell if a worker is submitting a stolen Social Security number.
Based on the article in Workforce Management, the proof that Howard Industries was using E-Verify is a statement from the company “Howard Industries runs every check allowed to ascertain the immigration status of all applicants for jobs” There was no indication that an independant investigation of Howard Industries was conducted to determine if they were using E-Verify correctly, or screening every employee. Perhaps they weren’t. Perhaps by using E-Verify, Howard Industries opened themselves up to an easier investigation of its practices by the Feds. I suppose it would be a simple arithmetic problem; how many employees it files on payroll, and how many submitted on E-Verify. Even if they match, it seems that the E-verify helps the government locate abused SSNs and duplicate employment records for stolen SSNs.
It should be interesting to see if the quality of E-verify I-9 Compliance pans out, and how the system is adopted in a largely volunteer space.
New HR Magazine launched about Employment Screening Industry
A new HR Magazine has just been announced, entitled “The Employment Screening Journal” The magazine has been launched by preemploymentdirectory.com, a directory of employment screening background check firms. The new magazine will apparently information for HR professionals about new updates in the pre-employment screening field.
Publication Timeline
No word about whether this magazine will be in print or when the first issue will be published, but hopefully it will feature quality articles by top professionals from the background check industry. Hopefully human resources professionals will have the time and stomach to digest this media source and stay abreast of legal issues and new screening practices.
human resources magazine
background checks
employment screening
Alabama offering Statewide Criminal Background Checks
The State of Alabama is now offering employers Alabama statewide criminal record search for $25.00. These searches can be ordered directly from their Alabama website or, if you use a third party background check provider, like Corra Background Checks, you allow them to access the criminal record information on your behalf.
ABC system reports include felony and misdemeanor arrests compiled from information provided by Alabama law enforcement agencies,” stated Mitchell. “ACJIC has also gone a step further by combining forces with Alabama’s court and public safety agencies to provide employers with a more comprehensive Alabama records check, including available Alabama circuit, district, and local court records for the past seven years and court cases that are currently pending.”
Some of the downsides to this system are the additional step of having your applicants sign an ABC compliant release form. Further, by providing arrest record information to employers, employers need to exercise caution when making adverse action decisions if they base this information on arrest records only and not convictions. Adverse actions not based on convictions might not be allowed by Federal law under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.