With companies across the nation beginning the precarious process of re-opening amid the COVID-19 pandemic, everyone is wondering what needs to be done to get employees back to work safely. It is easy to focus only on the health risks, which may be mitigated with a solid testing program, but employers who want to design a comprehensive plan will need to consider the role of background screening as well.
Here’s why: In the past two months, we have seen massive court closures and stay-at-home orders. During that time, crime has continued and, in some cases, increased, as is the case with domestic violence. Employers must now not only struggle with health concerns, but also with what their employees have been doing during their time away. And there’s a dilemma: crime continued, arrests continued, but unfortunately, trials did not. Court houses closed, meaning trials were postponed. This means no results when and if you were to run a background check on your employees for infractions that occurred during the pandemic.
So, what can you do to protect your workforce and ensure your company policies are being enforced? You can’t always rely on the employee to volunteer information about their arrest to your HR department. The answer potentially lies in continuous background screening. Adding an ongoing monitoring program will enable you to keep up-to-date on criminal records, once cases are decided and records begin to populate again. This provides a clear line of sight, without human intervention, to incidents as they are recorded in the courts, allowing your HR team to make more informed hiring decisions.
Continuous screening can include criminal convictions (felonies and misdemeanors), global sanctions, and entry onto various watch lists, sex offender registries, and more. The best part? With the right provider, continuous background screening is cost effective and quick to engage. Plus, in addition to workplace safety benefits, it could help your company save money by avoiding costly negligent hiring litigation.
If you are interested in developing a solid COVID-19 return-to-work safety plan, ask your background screening provider about adding ongoing monitoring to your program. ClearStar offers a comprehensive solution, with antibody/diagnostic testing and ongoing monitoring, along with a virtual badge that can be issued based on the results of either. This is for the record.
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Brad Carlson - Chief Revenue Officer
Brad drives ClearStar’s sales efforts with direct clients, Innovators, channel partners, and agents. He provides statistical analysis and forecasting and manages sales contributors, partnerships, and strategic alliances. Brad has extensive knowledge within the background screening industry serving as Vice President of Sales for four national background screening companies, including his role as EVP of Sales at General Information Services, where he led the sales efforts for all segments of the team for 6 years. Brad has over 30 years of active sales management, 19 of which were within the background screening industry.
At ClearStar, we are committed to your success. An important part of your employment screening program involves compliance with various laws and regulations, which is why we are providing information regarding screening requirements in certain countries, region, etc. While we are happy to provide you with this information, it is your responsibility to comply with applicable laws and to understand how such information pertains to your employment screening program. The foregoing information is not offered as legal advice but is instead offered for informational purposes. ClearStar is not a law firm and does not offer legal advice and this communication does not form an attorney client relationship. The foregoing information is therefore not intended as a substitute for the legal advice of a lawyer knowledgeable of the user’s individual circumstances or to provide legal advice. ClearStar makes no assurances regarding the accuracy, completeness, or utility of the information contained in this publication. Legislative, regulatory and case law developments regularly impact on general research and this area is evolving rapidly. ClearStar expressly disclaim any warranties or responsibility or damages associated with or arising out of the information provided herein.
