Background Checks Include Professional Licensing

Maybe this doctor’s office didn’t conduct background checks before, but they are likely to do so now.

A woman working as a Registered Nurse in a Connecticut doctor’s office was sentenced to serve nine months in prison for practicing without a license.  The doctor himself filed a complaint with the State Health Department in 2009 that the faux nurse acted unprofessionally.  The ensuing investigation determined that the woman had never been licensed as a nurse.

While employed by the physician, the woman “injected patients with medicine, wrote prescriptions, and gave medical advice to patients”.

In 2008, the woman received a “Nurse of the Year” award from the “Connecticut Nursing Association.”  As it turns out, the organization doesn’t exist and the woman paid over $2000 from her own pocket to stage the dinner.

The award was one of the reasons the doctor’s office believed the woman was legitimate.

View the entire article here.

On a side note, how many of the doctor’s patients have now consulted attorneys to see if they might have a claim for damages.  This is another case that plaintiffs are going to claim that the doctor’s office “knew or should have known” that the woman was unqualified based on background checks conducted on all employees… or were they?

Professional licenses, certifications, and credentials should be verified as part of every company’s policy on background checks.  A small oversight can lead to large headaches.

Questions about background checks?  Call 770-426-0547 or click here.

Background Checks Catch Falsified Resumes

Embellished, exaggerated, or stretched sounds much nicer when describing a job seeker’s resume, than calling it what it is: Falsified.

In addition to the basic criminal history and social trace, background checks are also useful in detecting other derogatory information presented by the applicant.

It’s a fact that because of the current economy, more and more people are looking to fill fewer and fewer jobs.  And there are plenty of those applying, in order to look better in an extremely competitive environment, who are tailoring their resumes to fit the position they are trying for.

Say that an applicant sees that a company is looking for someone with a college degree, and thinks that although he doesn’t actually have a degree, he did attend community college for a semester and he feels he has enough experience to do the job, so his college experience becomes a four year degree.

Bachelors Degrees become Masters and Masters become Ph.D.’s.  Salaries get inflated, responsibilities become more and more important, more employees are supervised, bookkeepers become accountants and accountants become CFO’s on the runaway resume.

No longer can an employer depend on an interview and resume and be certain of the caliber of employee he may be getting.  Even con men interview well.

Employers can’t spare the time to try to train and supervise an employee who is unqualified for the position for which he was hired.

Background checks can save time and money by weeding out unqualified applicants, and those that have falsified their qualifications to get a job.

For more information on resume verifications and employee checks, call 770-426-0547 or click here.

Background Checks Reveal Employment Gaps

Employment screening, by design, is done to eliminate unsuitable job candidates and to verify the information supplied by applicants on their resumes and applications.

One situation that comes up occasionally is the employment gap, or the length of time between jobs or school and a job.  Having time between jobs may mean nothing or it may hide something, such as an unexpected termination from a job, or even being in jail.  The facts should be determined during the employment screening process, not after the individual is hired.

Applicants will often explain gaps by saying they were self-employed, or were in school, took time to travel, stayed with a sick relative, or wanted to make a career change.  The time to get to the bottom of these gaps is during the employment screening process, notIf the individual claims to have been self-employed or working as a contractor, ask to see pay sheets, pay stubs, or tax documents that will show income from employment.  You may also get the names of references that can vouch for the person’s employment claims.  Careful here, however, to be certain that the reference is legitimate and not just a friend of the applicant.  Independently verify any phone numbers provided by the applicant for employment references.

If the person claims they were in school or a training program, ask details about the type of school and the location, and check with the school to verify dates of enrollment.

Always verify employment on both sides of the gap when conducting employment screening.  Previous employers will be able to verify if the reason your applicant left is correct.

Although the reason for a gap given by the applicant may seem legitimate, it never hurts to verify and know the facts.

For advice on your employment screening program, call 770-426-0547, or click here for answers.

Employer Requirements for Background Checks

The FTC and the FCRA give certain responsibilities to the end users of background checks.

There are basically three entities involved in the procurement of background checks.  They are

1. The consumer – or the subject of the background check
2. The end user – or the employer requesting the background check
3. The Consumer Reporting Agency (CRA) – the company that provides the information on background check

The requirements for the end user are explained in the Act (FCRA), but consist of four basic steps.

1. Disclosure and consent.  The disclosure that a consumer report may be obtained for employment purposes.  This should be done on a separate document and not included as a part of the employment application. The employee’s or applicant’s written consent must be obtained, and it may be included on the same document as the disclosure.
2. The end user must certify to the CRA that disclosures and consents have been made and obtained from the consumer.  Pre-adverse action disclosures will be made if necessary. (See number 3 below.)  If requested, further disclosure regarding investigative consumer reports will be provided.  The end user will comply with all federal and state Equal Employment Opportunity laws as they pertain to background checks.
3. If the end user contemplates adverse action, either not hiring, not retaining, or not promoting an employee based on information contained in the consumer report, the employer must provide to the applicant a copy of the consumer report provided by the CRA, the FTC’s Summary of Consumer Rights notice, a statement that adverse action is contemplated, and allow a reasonable time for the consumer to submit a dispute to the employer.
4. The Adverse Action Notice to the consumer after adverse action is taken will include the CRA’s name and contact information.  A statement will also be included that adverse action (not hiring, retention, promotion) is being taken, that the CRA is not the decision maker and can’t provide a reason for the decision, the consumer has a right to a free copy of the report and that the consumer has the right to dispute the accuracy of the report with the CRA.

It seems odd that the end user should be required to submit both a pre-adverse action and an adverse action notice, but the Act is very clear that both are required.  The Act does  not define a “reasonable time” to wait after a pre-adverse notice, but many companies specify five days.

For further information on these topics and on background checks, call 770-426-0547 or click here.

Background Checks and Phony Identification

You can get bad results from good background checks.

Identity theft has become a major problem to users of credit reports and to law enforcement.  It is a major headache to those unfortunate enough to have had their identity assumed by another person.  Millions of dollars are lost to fraud based on stolen identities.

Problems also arise when applicants use fake or purchased identification when applying for a job.

The FTC says that 17% of all identity theft in California is done for employment purposes.

Using stolen or fraudulent ID, a person applies for a job.  The company runs a name based background check using the name, date of birth, and other identifiers provided by the applicant.  The background check is returned showing accurate results, but not for the person applying for the job.  It is the background of the person whose identification was used, and the results may show that the applicant is suited for the job.  Background checks in this cases like these are worse than worthless, since they have has absolutely nothing to do with the candidates applying for the job.

Anyone applying for a job will expect to provide identification.  Employers should be thoroughly familiar with the various forms of drivers’ licenses, state issued identification, and ask for other documents if any look suspicious.  Also accept only a genuine social security card, not a copy or facsimile of some kind.  If they are unsure, resources are available to help.

Problems also appear when a person is arrested and booked using a fake ID.  The arresting agency uses the name and identifiers to enter the perpetrator into the criminal repository, and the arrestee becomes the person on the ID.  Sometimes the arrested person goes so far as to go to court and pay a fine using the false name.

This becomes a huge problem when the person whose ID was used goes to apply for a job and finds out that he or she has an arrest record.  The only way to get this straightened out is that once the information is disclosed to the applicant, he must go the arresting agency and request a fingerprint comparison.  Then the record can be removed, but this is procedure that can often take weeks or even months.  Then the victim is generally given a letter from the agency attesting that he is not the person named for that particular arrest.

When using background checks, be aware of the implication bogus ID’s may have, and how they may be used.

For further information on background checks, call 770-426-0547 or click here.