For our clients and friends located in South Carolina, this is a reminder that the state’s new immigration law is now in effect. The amended law requires all employers to enroll in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s E-Verify system beginning January 1, 2012 and to verify the legal status of all new employees through E-Verify within three business days. Failure to enroll in and use E-Verify to verify new hires will result in probation for the employer or suspension/revocation of the employer’s business licenses.

Certain parts of the law are on hold right now – including the most controversial elements like transportation of illegal immigrants and requiring officers to check the immigration status of people they pull over if they suspect they are in the country illegally.

South Carolina joins the states of Arizona, Alabama, Tennessee, North Carolina, Utah, Louisiana and Mississippi in requiring public and private employers to use E-Verify to confirm a worker’s status.  The states of Georgia, Indiana, Virginia, Florida, Idaho, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Minnesota, and Colorado mandate public employers, state agencies and/or state contractors use E-verify.

E-Verify is a free Internet-based system maintained by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. E-Verify compares the information an employee provides on Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, against millions of government records maintained by the Department of Homeland Security and the Social Security Administration. The database generally provides results in three to five seconds. If the information matches, the employee is eligible to work in the United States. If there’s a mismatch, E-Verify will alert the employer and the employee will be allowed to work while he or she resolves the problem.

For news on I-9/E-Verify law in your state, visit E-Verify & I-9 News » State Law, or contact a CARCO specialist at 866-557-5984 or visit  http://www.carcogroup.com .

The use of social media research in pre-employment screening and periodic employee re-screening is a hot topic for HR managers. The subject has been discussed in this and other forums over the last year but we are still being asked for guidelines and recommendations from many of our clients.

With social media tools such as Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, it is very easy for employers to find vast amounts of public information on prospective employees.  However, the legal implications of using public social profiles in the decision-making process can be costly.  Because we have received so many recent requests from clients and prospects, CARCO has worked closely with its counsel on FCRA and privacy matters to put together guidelines and recommendations on using social media research as part of pre-employment screening or employee periodic re-screening.  I wanted to share and discuss these guidelines with you.  Please see the link below.

 It should be noted that CARCO’s outside counsel for FCRA and privacy matters is a former FTC attorney and special counsel to the President on privacy, and is preeminent in this field.

Information contained in this white paper is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as legal advice.  Employers should contact their legal counsel when setting company policy on the use of social media in hiring decisions.

http://www.carcogroup.com/resource-center-cms.php?product_id_sku=RC02

Roger Reagan would be alive today and celebrating Thanksgiving Day with his family if the Dunaway Timber Company had done a background check on its new driver.  The driver had no business driving a tractor trailer! You see, Morgan Quisenberry lied on his employment application about having two past license revocations for substance abuse. Dunaway Timber could have learned about these license revocations with a simple background search that took only 15 minutes and cost $15. 

Roger Reagan was killed when Quisenberry’s tractor trailer went across the center line while taking a curve in the roadway and veered directly into the cab of the semi-truck Reagan was driving.

This deadly crash occurred only 19 days after the driver was hired by Dunaway.

The Plaintiff’s attorney argued that, “We all expect trucking companies who send truck drivers out onto the public roads to do so with professional, competent people and then make sure the company trains them and monitors them. But this was an example where a company hired someone who had no business driving a truck in the first place, and then blatantly ignored the regulations that govern the trucking industry.”

$7 MILLION is the amount awarded to Roger Reagan’s family.  The jury found Dunaway Timber to be 75% negligent and its driver 25% negligent in this case.

This is another story of a hard “lesson learned” for those companies – large or small – that do not have a robust pre employment screening process in place.  Dunaway Timber Company’s failure to do so was a tragic mistake for Roger Reagan and his family and a costly mistake for the company. Now is the time to take a look at your company’s hiring practices and processes to ensure they protect your company and your employees from mistakes and tragedies that could be brought about by just one bad hiring decision.

http://dockets.justia.com/docket/arkansas/arwdce/3:2010cv03016/34497/

SAVE THE DATE: Cornell University in conjunction with Cornell Law School presents The Richard Netter Conference on Criminal Records and Employment

Frederick G. Giles, CPP, CARCO Group, Inc.’s Senior Vice President, Research Division will speak on a panel at 1:30 p.m. on the topics of: What do Employers Need to Know When Using Criminal Records? What is relevant to Hiring? Employer Fear of Negligent Hiring Suits. 

Thursday, Dec. 8, 2011

Cornell ILR NYC Conference Center

16 East 34th Street, 6th floor, New York City

Bringing together social scientists, employee advocates, background checking agencies, employers, employer counsel and government officials, the aim of this conference is to facilitate a frank discussion of the issues, including: background checks and re-entry, the growing “Ban the Box” movement and concerns raised under Title VII and/or the Fair Credit Reporting Act that affect the employment of people with criminal records. 

Click here for registration information or download the agenda in progress.    

CARCO Group, Inc. is one of only 20 background screening companies that is  NAPBS Accredited!

California joins Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Maryland, Oregon, and Washington as states that limit the use of credit checks for employment purposes.

Governor Jerry Brown signed Bill AB 22 which, as of January 1, 2012, prohibits the use of credit reports by a California employer or prospective employer, except for certain financial institutions, from obtaining a consumer credit report with the exception of the following:

(1) a position in the State Department of Justice,

 (2) a managerial position, as defined

(3) a position of a sworn peace officer or other law enforcement position,

 (4) a position for which the information contained in the report is required by law to be disclosed or obtained,

(5) a position that involves regular access to specific personal information for any purpose other than the routine solicitation and processing of credit card applications in a retail establishment,

 (6) a position in which the person is or would be a named signatory on the employer’s bank or credit card account, or authorized to transfer money or enter into financial contracts on the employer’s behalf,

 (7) a position that involves access to confidential or proprietary information, as specified, or

 (8) a position that involves regular access to $10,000 or more of cash, as specified.

The Bill also requires the written notice informing the person for whom a consumer credit report is sought for employment purposes to also inform the person of the specific reason for obtaining the report.

As of September 14, 2011, Cleveland will no longer require candidates for city jobs to disclose felony convictions on employment applications.  Cleveland joins approximately 30 other cities and counties, as well as some states, in an effort to provide fair employment opportunities for all qualified candidates, including those with a criminal past.  

Job finalists will, however, have to undergo background investigations and certain criminal activity could be cause for rejection for certain positions.  Federal and state laws restrict the hiring of  felons for certain jobs, including working with the elderly or children.  According to Stephen JohnsonGrove of the Ohio Justice and Policy Center, a nonprofit law firm focused on reforming the state’s criminal justice system, the change is not meant to “put the embezzler in the finance department” or ” put the child molester in the day-care center”.  “What we want to do is make sensible decisions and be transparent about how those decisions were made.”

On September 28th, a federal district court in Alabama allowed most provisions of a recently enacted Alabama law (H.B. 56, previously reported) to take effect, including a provision which would require all private businesses in the state to use E-Verify by April 1, 2012. That provision of the law was not challenged in the lawsuit brought by the U.S. Department of Justice and several interest groups, but the entirety of the law had been enjoined from enforcement pending preliminary review.

CARCO’s partnership approach to risk mitigation results in customized, timely and cost-effective vetting of your candidates. With our pre-employment background screening and Onboarding Solution, you receive comprehensive pre-employment background screening with our 30+ years experience, superior technology, and wide network of resources. We track, verify, analyze and reverify results.

For more information on our full suite of pre employment screening products, visit www.carcogroup.com or call us at 866-557-5984.

CARCO’s E-Verify solution confirms the identity and employment eligibility of new hires through a direct interface with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Our I-9 solution may be integrated with your (Applicant Tracking System / Human Resources Information System) ATS/HRIS, or used as a standalone with CARCO’s Onboarding Solution, to streamline the hiring process and complete the E-Verify process simultaneously (utilizing secure e-signature technology).

For more information and to view CARCO’s E-Verify webinar, visit www.carcogroup.com.

Did you know that CARCO is accredited by the National Association of Professional Background Screeners (NAPBS)?  This distinction is only earned by one percent of all employment screening companies.

What is NAPBS?  According to their website, “NAPBS serves to represent the interest of companies offering tenant, employment and background screening. NAPBS exists to promote ethical business practices, promote compliance with the Fair Credit Reporting Act and foster awareness of issues related to consumer protection and privacy rights within the background screening industry.”

To become accredited, consumer reporting agencies must pass a rigorous onsite audit, conducted by an independent auditing firm, of its policies and procedures as they relate to six critical areas: consumer protection, legal compliance, client education, product standards, service standards, and general business practices. CARCO met or exceeded over 50 industry standards.

Be sure to ask your background screening vendor if it is NAPBS accredited.  If not, contact CARCO - setting the standard for accurate and reliable screening for 30+ years.