The ripples of the global Coronavirus outbreak are still on-going, costing more lives and others at risk in the form of the second wave of COVID-19.
Corporations institutions worldwide, whether public or private or Industries, whether Transport, Healthcare, Education, Security, Aged Care - have seen a substantial reshuffling of the workforce.
This event brings out the question of securing a good hire or a bad hire for the company. Of course, performing a background check comes out as the first shield in protecting the company, including employees, clients and volunteers.
But a few handful companies & respective HR managers are in such a rush to fulfill the position that they neglect the importance of Pre-employment background checks, employment background checks, and with non-for-profit organisations a volunteer with a Volunteer police check.
Let’s go step by step in understanding how critical it is to perform employment screening to avoid any significant mistakes causing the business a financial loss or, even more problematic - affecting the brand name.
What are Pre-Employment Background Checks?
Pre-employment background checks are conducted by almost every company in some form of employment screening to mitigate employee-related threats & risks.
A background check is a ‘point-in-time’ check, meaning it reveals criminal, fraudulent, or other relevant activities. Thus, it is also a pressing matter for companies to consider regular checking or re-screening.
The extent & nature of the information disclosed in the background check results depends on the purpose of the said check. There are different types of Australian Employment & On-Demand Background Checks, which industries use as per their need or hiring policy.
Here are a few takeaway points from a report in 2020 on Occupational Fraud and Abuse for the Asia-Pacific Edition.
- Common occupational fraud schemes were Corruption, Non-cash, Billing, Financial statements, etc.
- Initial occupation fraud detection factors were Tip, Internal Audit, Management Review, External Audit, etc.
- The tip detected -53% of cases with Employee Fraud Awareness Training
- Banking, Government, Manufacturing, Technology are among the few top industry sectors with maximum loss reported
- 5 most common fraud departments were noted as Sales, Operations, Upper Management, Accounting, and Purchase
- Losses caused by men were twice as significant as caused due to women
- 78% of frauds were committed by men
- An employee tenure was directly proportional to the fraud & risk, meaning the longer an employee stayed with the company increased the chances of fraud
Click here to check the full report.
What is Covered in a Pre-Employment Background Check?
Background checks are performed either Australia-wide or for State-specific (such as National police check SA, National police check NSW, Police check ViC, etc.) as per the need and purpose.
Usually, they are consent-based checks that disclose an applicant’s complete background & history by checking the name, date of birth, and gender against the records in the police information database held by the ACIC (Australian Criminal Intelligence Commission).
Here are a few areas which are usually covered in a pre-employment background check.
1) Identity Verification
2) National police check (a.k.a., Police Clearance or Criminal History Check)
3) Employment History
4) Education Background Check
5) Government-issued Licenses
6) Traffic History Check
7) Medical History Check
8) Credit History Check
Importance of Screening & Employment Background Checks In Hiring
It is imperative for organisations to hire reliable & trustworthy candidates. Let’s understand why employment screening or pre-employment background checks are essential.
Verifying Authenticity
A few people forge or provide fake details of their work history or education when searching for a job. Failing a background check could land you in hiring someone who is not qualified for the role.
Performing Character Check
Even a little markup or enhancements in work history and other details is a sign of dishonesty. Performing employment screening helps you in hiring a person with good character.
Keeping Workplace Safe
The primary goal is to protect your employees, customers, clients, and company in the event of any such threat, abuse, risk, or fraud.
Limit Company’s Liability
Companies can avoid financial loss, lower insurance costs, & save lawsuit charges by hiring people who clear a pre-employment screening.
Save Time & Resources
By avoiding a bad hire, you would be making a highly impactful decision for the company in saving time, resources that are otherwise spent in re-hiring & conducting interviews & profiling candidates from the beginning.
Conducting an on-demand background check or due diligence on a candidate has its advantages for a hiring company.
Employment Rescreening For Brand Integrity & Cost-cutting
As time passes, employee risk & the organisation’s brand goes hand-in-hand to face vulnerabilities and compliance if things go haywire. Rescreening your employees from time to time ensures strengthening employee relations and brand protection.
To avoid hurting the sentiments or employee integrity that comes with the background check request - a company needs to promote it as a global brand-building strategy apart from the HR policy, company compliance, due diligence, etc. It will help to focus on common & shared objectives, goals, & values for both the employees and the organisation.
At times, life isn’t fair to all and changes people accordingly. Especially in today’s age, the ratio of people suffering from anxiety and higher stress levels is increasing day by day. Such things force people to experience personal issues, lean on drugs, and other forms of addictions that are only the beginning for disasters to happen.
The primary pre-hire background check may not contain any criminal history that employees might have committed after joining the company. With reference to the report, the longer the tenure, the greater the risk because employees might have access to sensitive or proprietary information or simply have higher clearance.
When employees change positions or volunteers are assigned to new roles, they’ll have new responsibilities which might expose them to sensitive and financial information. Thus, a time-to-time check on employees and volunteers with volunteer police checks is considered the best industry practice.
Wrap Up:
Time, trust, and liability become the major risk factors and are a pressing matter when it comes to hiring new staff for the company.
Amid such circumstances, you need to rely on a background check service provider like KONCHECK to deliver the result in the fastest, safest, and at a pocket-friendly price.
With the digital advancement, you can now receive the accredited Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check within 1-2 business days. Contact us today for your industry-specific background checks or national police check, or employment screening services.