An Article in WFAA in Texas, discusses the troubling condition of the San Antonio airport, where 767 foreign mechanics have been hired in the past two years.    These workers undergo a background check U.S. State department in their home country, but there is concern about the ability to conduct a proper international criminal record check.  

“Criminal record keeping in much of the world is “nonexistent.” Moreover, some of the home countries of the mechanics do not have diplomatic relations with the U.S.”

We talk a lot about the problems of conducting criminal records searches in the United States.   There are nationwide criminal database searches that are good in about 40 states, as well excellent county courthouse records going back at least 7 years as per FCRA guidelines.  Federal Criminal records are also available on databases and researched at the courthouse by professionals.  

International Criminal Records
In foreign countries, the criminal record searches vary depending on the record keeping quality of the country.   In practice, if you are hiring foreign workers it is best to conduct a international criminal background check with a company who is knowledgeable about the criminal record keeping practices of each country.   One company, Corra Group, has an extensive research network spanning the globe with local researchers on the ground. These researchers know their local courthouse traits and can provide the best in practice international criminal records.

background checks
international criminal records
san antonio criminal records

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

electronic I-9
DHS
E-Verify

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

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.

background checks
alabama background checks
alabama ABC

“While we had certainly hoped that the district and the attorney general’s office would have respected the privacy of individual citizens, we’re now forced to file suit to protect the fundamental rights of AISD employees,” said Doug Rogers, the group’s executive director.

Read the full article here:

While the courts decide the issue, it’s worth discussing what’s at stake here.   The trouble with protecting public records about teachers in a public school is that the students of citizens attend these schools.  It seems that the public has a right to the results of the background checks conducted on the teachers, at least the ”public records” portion, such as criminal background history, civil background history, liens, judgments, etc. 

The importance of background checks in public school cannot be igored.  In light of the litigation involved in the Roman Catholic church scandal over abuse inside the church, any organization must be aware of the potental fallout of negligent hiring and not running background checks on your employees.  School need to screen all employees of the school system, not just teachers. 

 background checks
teacher background checks
education verification 

Firstly, hiring instutions must comply with the FCRA Fair credit report act, which protects candidates from this situation.  Should a candidate not be hired due to negative information on the background check, he must receive a letter stating this, and should be entitled to a copy of the background check.  The article doesn’t mention what sort of negative information was listed in the report, so let’s discuss criminal records.  All good background check court researchers follow a list of matching procedures to assure the degree of accurary with criminal court matches. Usually the minimum match is a full first and last name and date of birth match, but it can also include social security number, address and middle name matches.  Anything less, such as a name only match, should be indicated on the report.  Occassionally there are very common names, like John Smith, that happen to have the same date of birth as your candidate, so further verification via ssn, address history, and middle name can be very important.  All of this should be discussed with your hiring instution when any negative information is returned.  

  background checks
higher learning

From the perspective of an employer with a bunch of interchangeable potential hires, it’s most efficient to simply run everyone through the system and fail to hire people with problematic records. Pre-employment screening is illegal, but a study commissioned by the DHS last year found that nearly half of participating employers were ignoring at least some mandated worker protections.

The writer misused the phrase “pre-employment screening” which is the professional term used by screeners to describe legal, FCRA-compliant background checks conducted by employers to screen offer-ready candidates. Pre Employment Screening is legal and necessary in today’s working environment. The activity described in the article is probably described as not in compliance with the E-Verify electronic I-9 program. Note that most of the time the i-9 process will come back clear.