Employers can show that they practice the due diligence required to avoid negligent hiring by having solid pre-employment screening practices in place.

The first step in designing a solid pre-employment screening program includes a comprehensive review of your existing program by a professional background screening firm like Corporate Screening. This assessment should identify risk, inefficiency and opportunities for improvement as well as the most effective products and services needed to mitigate your risk.

To avoid a negligent hiring lawsuit, employers should establish a pre-employment screening program that is:

• Thorough
  A pre-employment screening that shows due diligence includes a criminal background search of each county the applicant has lived for the last seven years, reference checks at each company the applicant has worked for the last seven years and verification of all degrees and licenses claimed by the applicant.
• Consistent
  The most thorough pre-employment screening program in the world won’t save a company from a negligent hiring lawsuit if it’s only used in certain situations. A strict screening process should be used regardless of how quickly an employee needs to be hired or how short-term the employment is thought to be.
• Documented
  Employers should keep documentation of screenings that have been performed on every single one of their employees as long as those employees are at their company. This documentation could save them from a costly lawsuit.
• Relevant
  The more an employee interacts with others, the more thorough that employee’s background check should be. Certain situations also call for certain extra precautions. For example, a screening on someone who wants to work with children should go the extra mile careful to check for sexual crimes, and a screening on someone who’ll be responsible for money should be more concerned about theft.

Set up a consultation with a Corporate Screening representative to learn which pre-employment screening services can best protect you against negligent hiring lawsuits.

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