Durham & Associates, Inc.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

 

Q: Why should an employer hire a professional background company to conduct pre-employment screening?

A: As the person responsible for making hiring decisions, you and your company are at great risk.

Negligent hiring and negligent retention lawsuits are exploding across America, costing companies millions of dollars in settlements. These legal doctrines make you and your company liable for the actions of your employees, even beyond the scope of their normal job activities.

The law is absolutely clear: You have a duty to thoroughly check the background of all new applicants (full or part time) as well as current employees.

A simple, inexpensive way to protect yourself and your business is to have a professional company like Durham & Associates verify critical applicant background information and check for any criminal history. The cost is usually less than one day's wages for the average hourly employee.

Moreover, retaining an outside, independent company to perform background checks further reduces risk to your company. Were you faced with a hiring or employment related lawsuit, the liability would be passed out of your legal responsibility and lawful accountability.

Make no mistake -- a professional, accurate background investigation is perhaps the most cost effective investment you can make in regard to employee training, turnover, and productivity in addition to reducing your risk of employer liability.

 

Q: What are the chances an employer could have a "problem" employee?

A: Consider the following facts:

• 30% of U.S. business bankruptcies are due to employee theft.

• 60% of new business failures are due to internal theft.

• 70% of all resumes contain false information.

• Retail employees steal 20 times more than shoplifters.

• Bank employees steal 10 times more than bank robbers.

• To reduce inmate populations, "revolving door" prisons are releasing  felons in huge numbers who then seek employment in the workplace.

• The average negligent hiring award is $1,000,000 and climbing.

• Fraudulent insurance claims have increased over 600% since 1992.

 

Q: How prevalent is violence and drug use in the workplace?

A: Workplace violence and drug abuse have exploded at alarming rates.

Over 2 million workers suffer physical attacks on the job each year. Workplace violence is the leading cause of death in the workplace for women and the second leading cause for men.

One in five workers (age 18-36) use drugs on the job. Ten percent of the work force are alcoholics and one- half of all industrial accidents are linked to alcohol and drugs.

Cocaine use continues to remain a significant problem for employers. And crystal meth abuse is now at epidemic proportions. Consider the traits of a typical cocaine user:

• Well educated

• Employed (78%)

• Well paid (over $35,000 / yr)

• Engaged in illegal activities to support the drug habit

(Statistics from: the National Institute on Drug Abuse)

 

Q: What kinds of background checks are available and how do I know what to do?

Based on the job position being filled, we recommend, at a minimum, a criminal felony/ misdemeanor back-ground check in locations where the applicant has lived, worked, or gone to school for the past seven years (this is the industry “standard”).

Such information can be determined from the address history provided by the applicant; however, it is best to perform a social security number trace first to obtain the individual’s address history. This essential check determines not only if the SSN is valid, but also if your applicant is omitting information on his or her application.

It is in your best interest to run a credit report if the applicant handles money or has any financial responsibility. This report serves as an excellent indication of how the prospective employee handles money and how responsible he or she is with personal finances.

If the prospective job position requires the operation of a motor vehicle, a driving record is indispensable in protecting against hiring negligence from habitual driving offenders.

Other searches of interest may include: past employment history; education, degree or professional licensure verification; civil records (excessive and/or chronic litigation); federal records (criminal, civil and bankruptcy information); a nationwide wants/warrants search, sex offender search, and drug screening.

 

The Office of Homeland Security recommends background checks for all areas of employment!