Background Checks

Despite the legal ramifications, many employers mistakenly believe that they can go without conducting background checks(Click here) on potential new hires. Some have the habit of thinking that serious hiring mistakes won’t happen to their business, while others simply can’t justify the expense.

These employers should consider the statistics. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, state and federal courts found approximately 6 percent of adults in the nation guilty of a felony in 2004. Altogether, 1,145,000 individuals were convicted, with 1,079,000 at the state level and 66,518 at the federal level.

Since the economy is currently struggling and there are fewer jobs, many employers are now receiving an abundance of resumes for each position they announce. If a company has 50 applicants for a position, this means that, according to statistics, 3 of these individuals will have a felony on their record. Many people will not disclose their past transgressions, so conducting background checks is the only way to safeguard the workplace.

Bankrate.com found that one-third of all resumes contain some level of dishonesty. According to Business Week, applicants for executive level jobs are also guilty of misleading employers. Around 16 percent of these professionals make false claims about their educational background or employment history. With this many individuals deciding not to be honest with employers, background checks are important to avoid hiring an individual who does not have the training necessary to fulfill their responsibilities.

According to a Right Management survey conducted in 2006, making a bad hiring decision usually costs around 2 ½ times the salary of the position in question when an employee doesn’t work out. This figure includes recruitment, training, severance costs and lost productivity.
Other risks associated with no conducting background checks on job applicants includes; employee theft, workplace violence and problems insurance companies.

When all of these things are considered, it is obviously much cheaper to investigate candidates before hiring.