Summary
A 2006 survey of human resource professionals by the Society for Human Resource Management found that 85% of those surveyed hired outside agencies to conduct background checks of potential hires and, of those, 96% reported using criminal records checks-up from 51% in 1996. Many screening services now recommend a civil records check as part of the hiring process for executive-level positions. But experts also say they are a screening tool that employers need to handle with care. A survey by ChoicePoint, a screening company in Alpharetta, Georgia, found that a majority of workers were comfortable with employers doing criminal background checks, but felt that civil suit checks are an invasion of privacy. Les Rosen, president of Employment Screening Resources in Novato, CA, says the basic rule for using civil records in making a hiring decision is whether the information is a valid predictor of job performance.
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SECTOR STATS
85%Percentage of HR professionals hiring outside agencies to conduct background checks of potential hires23%Percentage of 7,000 executive résumés containing exaggerated or completely false informationSources: Society for Human Resource Management, 2006; Christian & Timbers, 2002WHEN BRUCE S. FILLPOT applied for a job as a financial analyst at Intel Corp., his résumé did not lack distinction. A past president of the New Mexico Society of CPAs, he had helped write legislation and authored numerous articles in professional publications. During his career, he had worked for...See the full content of this document
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