Hiring a candidate for a certain position at your company is a huge responsibility. Not only is it about finding the perfect candidate with the right qualifications and experience, but also about bringing an individual into your workplace and ensuring they create a safe working space for their colleagues and do not put the reputation of the company at stake. This is why running background checks is increasingly popular in the current times.
Background checks can help increase job application quality and avoid any mishaps at the workplaces, such as theft, violence, and embezzlement.
While running a background check might seem like a daunting task, which it is, hiring a pre-employment or personal background check company eases this task for you as you have professional assistance. If you’re planning to perform a background check on applicants, there are a few things you should know. To help you better with it, here are some common questions related to background checks answered for you.
- When Should You Do A Background Check?
Background checks play a crucial role in helping employers make an informed decision in terms of hiring. Since most applications or resumes received by employers have some degree of inconsistency or lies, it is safe to say that you should perform a background check when you’re hiring a candidate for a position to avoid job fraud. If you’re seeking to improve the quality of hires, protect the reputation of your company, or prevent embezzlement, or minor or major criminal activity, a background check can reveal a lot about the potential employee and help you make the right decision.
- How Long Does It Take To Run A Background Check?
Running a background check is a fairly simple process, and it can be instant or can take several days. The timeframe may vary from one individual to another based on an individual’s history. When a candidate submits an application or resume that is accurate and error-free, the time taken for the background check is significantly reduced. Additionally, the process is a lot smoother and less time-consuming when both the employer and the candidate work together and complete the required authorizations.
- How Much Does A Background Check Cost?
There are a host of factors that decide how much a background check would cost, including the type of background check you intend to run. While credit history checks take about $25 to $35 per check, a criminal background check may cost you between $20 to $100 per hire. The cost of the background check may vary from one service provider to another and from state to state.
- What Do Background Checks Reveal About You?
Since a background check is aimed at revealing the authenticity of the information shared by a candidate, you can expect to have access to the candidate’s identity verification through social service number tracing, employment verification, and academic verification. However, there are different types of background checks that help reveal certain details about the candidate.
Employment verification can help employers assess the authenticity of their previous work experience, which helps make the right hiring decision. This is because no employer would want to hire a candidate who is underqualified for the position in reality. Furthermore, employment verification can also highlight any conflicts or disputes, if any, with their previous companies.
As educational qualification is also a primary criterion when hiring candidates, academic verification helps match their educational qualifications on CVs to have access to their actual educational experience. A background check can also uncover any criminal records of a candidate, although this type of background check may take more time than a basic background check.
- Will Doing A Background Check Lead Me To Potential Employers?
A background check is definitely a crucial part of processing a candidate’s resume or job application. A candidate that undergoes a background check does not necessarily get hired. However, since background checks cost a certain amount of money, it is generally observed that employers run a background check when they seriously consider a candidate for a position. This leads to the assumption that, when an employer runs a background check on you, you have greater chances of getting hired. However, this does not in itself guarantee that you will be hired.
This step is a precautionary measure that helps employers ensure every detail on the application is true. In addition to this, while some employers prefer to run a background check on a few selected candidates, some would want to make it an essential part of their hiring process, thus running a background check on most candidates before shortlisting them. So, it may be tricky to tell if or not a background check would mean greater chances of being hired for the position.
- Will A Background Check Uncover Criminal Records?
If an employer opts for a comprehensive background check, it also uncovers criminal records. While a basic background check may not entail details related to criminal records, it is up to the employer to run a background check that is inclusive of criminal records check. This type of background check involves litigation searches made across court records, such as district civil courts and tribunals, high courts, supreme court, and magistrate court.
One of the reasons why employers prefer to have access to a candidate’s criminal records is that it helps them ensure a safe work environment and avoid hiring candidates with criminal intent. Opting for a comprehensive background check means being confident about hiring a candidate with a clean past.
- Should I Trust A Third-Party Who Runs Background Checks?
Third-party service providers who run background checks are actually a preferred solution by employers as this offers a legal immunity. This definitely makes third parties running background checks a reliable and trusted option. In addition to that, outsourcing background screening to professional agencies also helps companies in cutting costs while having better access to pertinent records, which might be challenging when companies undertake the background screening process without help from third-party service providers.
Whether you plan to run a background check on a potential employee or on yourself before applying for a job, it is a fairly simple process. With hundreds of background check companies available at your disposal, having access to information about a candidate and verifying the information they provide on their application is a hassle-free process. While these services come with a price tag, they’re worth every penny as they assure peace of mind when you decide to hire a candidate and make them a part of your organization.
