如果候选人在收到录取通知后未通过背景调查怎么办

寻找完美的候选人来填补空缺职位可能是一项艰巨的任务。招聘经理需要找到具有工作经验、资格和技能的人，其个性和工作风格与该工作场所的公司文化相契合。为一个人匹配一份工作是一项艰苦的工作，这就是为什么找到完美的候选人并向他或她提供工作机会是一种胜利——但如果该候选人在工作机会后没有通过背景调查怎么办？

背景调查失败意味着什么？

在这篇文章中，我们将探讨在工作机会后未通过的背景调查如何促使雇主撤销该工作机会。在我们根据背景审查审查取消工作机会或取消候选人资格的动态之前，我们将研究另一个关键问题：“未通过”此检查意味着什么？

就业筛选不是在学校进行的测试或考试，其中有“正确”或“错误”的答案，也不是“通过”或“失败”的明确客观标准。背景筛选可以包括有关候选人过去的各种信息，包括犯罪历史、民事法庭历史、教育和就业历史、驾驶记录详细信息和信用历史。根据雇主和职位，在任何这些类别中收集的信息都可能构成“危险信号”，并且每个类别都可能成为背景评估失败的原因。

某些信息比其他信息更有可能成为就业危险信号。例如，重罪定罪——尤其是那些暴力犯罪或性犯罪——可能会导致大多数雇主停工。其他危险信号特定于某些工作：一个例子是驾驶历史，它与大多数工作无关，但与涉及驾驶的职位高度相关。

通常，“未通过”筛选意味着候选人过去有一些事情会质疑他们安全有效地担任该职位的能力。关于犯罪历史，雇主通常会寻找与工作职责直接相关的定罪，或由于工作性质而极有可能再次发生的犯罪。例如，银行可能会在得知候选人因挪用公款而被定罪后撤销其工作机会，因为该职位可能提供在未来犯下类似罪行的机会。

除了犯罪历史，如果检查显示候选人在教育、工作经历或其他资格方面撒谎，候选人可能无法通过背景审查；或者，如果参考检查会质疑他们的职业道德和性格。

候选人未能通过背景调查的原因有很多。由招聘经理和他们的团队决定，尽管出现危险信号，他们是否愿意雇用某人。

候选人未通过背景调查：这是该怎么做

想象一下，您已经为您的组织的空缺职位找到了完美的候选人。这个人有一份强大的简历，在整个面试过程中给你留下了深刻的印象。你向他们提供了工作机会，前提是通过候选人历史检查。如果调查发现一个或多个危险信号，迫使您重新考虑您的招聘决定，会发生什么？现在你的候选人没有通过背景调查，你应该怎么做？

这是一个分步指南，可帮助您完成就业前筛选过程中这一困难（有时还涉及法律问题）的部分。

1. 确认您对正确的人进行了检查

背景调查通常使用一个人的名字进行，这有时会导致误报，因为许多人都有相对常见的名字，而其他人共享。支票可以返回不属于您的候选人而是恰好与他们的名字和姓氏相同的人的刑事定罪或记录。

这些数据不准确可能会伤害求职者。如果您因为有犯罪记录而取消完美候选人的工作机会，结果却发现搜索找到了错误的人，并且您发现的犯罪记录不属于您的候选人，该怎么办？您现在正在根据虚假信息对候选人的声誉进行诽谤，这反过来又对您的组织产生了不良影响。

出于这些原因，每个雇主都必须确保他们与一家以进行彻底、准确和高质量的记录搜索而闻名的背景报告公司合作。在 backgroundchecks.com，我们采取重要措施避免报告出现误报，将出生日期、地点、社会安全号码和其他详细信息整合到我们的候选人检查中。

这些详细的检查不仅帮助我们确保为合适的个人找到合适的记录，而且还为我们的客户增加了四个价值。我们可以提供地址历史检查、别名检查和其他筛选，以帮助更全面地了解候选人的过去。

2. 仔细审查您的招聘政策

确定候选人是否未通过背景调查是一门不精确的科学。对一个雇主或工作的背景调查失败的构成在不同的工作场所或职位上不一定具有相同的影响。

雇主可以通过制定完整的招聘政策和背景调查协议来简化背景调查的决策过程。该政策应概述雇主将为每位候选人（或每个部门、部门类型或职位，如果存在差异）进行哪些候选人历史搜索。它还应该包含一个“决策矩阵”，以确定雇主将考虑的理由表明候选人在工作机会后未通过背景调查的刑事定罪或其他调查结果的类型。

制定这些政策可为雇主带来几项明显的好处。首先是法律保护。针对每种招聘情况遵循明确的政策可以降低雇主对待候选人（例如有色人种）与其他候选人不同的可能性。详细的招聘政策可以防止招聘过程中的歧视或偏见，从而降低法律责任风险。

这种招聘政策的第二个主要好处与背景历史协议和决策矩阵有关。通过识别搜索可能发现的特定危险信号——从犯罪到简历谎言等等——该政策为招聘经理提供了一张地图，他们可以用它来确定是取消工作机会还是继续工作。

候选人历史搜索可能会发现决策矩阵中没有明确列出的不可预见的情况，在这种情况下，招聘经理及其团队将不得不决定如何进行。在大多数情况下，全面的候选人审查政策和决策矩阵将使雇主不必在每次审查背景报告时询问有关特定危险信号的问题。

3. 用预先不利行动通知通知候选人

在消费者报告中，“不良行为”是指根据背景报告做出的决定，将对候选人产生负面影响。在就业筛选中，“不利行为”通常意味着雇主已决定取消候选人的工作机会或以其他方式取消候选人的就业考虑。

作为《公平信用报告法》(FCRA) 的一部分，在这种情况下，雇主必须向候选人提供“不利行动前通知”。此通知旨在让候选人知道，由于他们的背景调查结果，他们将不再考虑手头的工作。

通知必须概述不利行为的具体原因——无论是犯罪记录、信用记录还是其他方面的问题——并且必须包括反映此信息的背景报告的副本。该通知还必须包括消费者金融保护局的权利摘要副本。

最后，雇主必须等待一段“合理”的时间——通常解释为五个工作日或更长时间——让候选人审查不利行动通知和背景调查报告并做出回应。在等待时间结束之前，雇主不能根据候选人的背景调查做出任何不利的决定。在至少五个工作日过去之前，雇主不能正式撤销候选人的工作机会或雇用其他人。

“合理”的等待期让候选人有时间对报告的调查结果提出异议，如果他们认为这些调查结果不准确的话。候选人将直接通过背景报告公司提出此类争议，而不是通过做出不利决定的雇主。

如果候选人确实对雇主在不利前沟通中提供给他们的信息有异议，则雇主必须等到争议完全解决后再采取不利行动。

4. 向候选人提供不利行动通知

如果在遵循上述所有要求后，雇主决定根据背景调查报告做出不利决定，他们必须向候选人提供不利行动通知。本文件以书面形式通知候选人，雇主已做出取消其工作机会并取消候选人的就业考虑资格的最终决定。

除了以书面形式通知候选人招聘决定外，不利行动通知还必须提供其他几条信息：

• 进行筛选和准备报告的背景调查公司的名称、地址和电话号码

• 背景报告公司没有做出不利决定的免责声明

• 通知候选人有权在不利决定后的 62 天内随时获得其报告的第二份免费副本

• 通知候选人可以联系报告机构对报告中他们认为不准确、不完整或过时的任何信息提出异议

Finding the perfect candidate to fill a job opening can be a significant undertaking. Hiring managers need to find someone who has the experience, qualifications, and skills to do the job and whose personality and work style meshes with the company culture of that workplace. Matching a person to a job is hard work, which is why it is a victory to find the perfect candidate and extend him or her an offer of employment—but what if that candidate failed a background check after the job offer?

What Does It Mean to Fail a Background Check?

In this post, we will explore how a failed background check after a job offer might prompt an employer to rescind that offer. Before we review the dynamics of pulling an employment offer or disqualifying a candidate based on a background screening, we will examine another critical question: what does “failing” this check mean?

An employment screening is not a test or exam at school for which there are “right” or “wrong” answers and a clear, objective standard for what constitutes “passing” or “failing.” A background screening can include a variety of information about a candidate’s past, including criminal history, civil court history, education and employment history, driving record details, and credit history. Information gleaned in any of these categories could potentially constitute a “red flag” depending on the employer and position, and each could potentially be grounds for a failed background assessment.

Some pieces of information are more likely to be employment red flags than others. For instance, felony convictions—particularly those for violent crimes or sexual offenses—are likely to cause pause for most employers. Other red flags are specific to certain jobs: one example is driving history, which is not relevant to most jobs but is highly relevant to positions that involve driving.

Usually, “failing” a screening means that a candidate has something in their past that calls into question their ability to take the position safely and effectively. Regarding criminal history, employers are usually looking for convictions that relate directly to the responsibilities of the job, or crimes that have a high likelihood of recurring due to the nature of the job. For example, a bank might rescind a job offer from a candidate after learning that he or she has a conviction for embezzlement, due to the opportunity that the position might provide to commit a similar crime in the future.

Beyond criminal history, a candidate might fail their background screening if the check reveals that they lied about their education, work history, or other qualifications; or if reference checks call into question their work ethic and character.

There are many reasons why a candidate fails a background check. It is up to the hiring manager and their team to determine whether they feel comfortable hiring someone despite red flags.

A Candidate Failed the Background Check: Here's What to Do

Imagine that you’ve found the perfect candidate for an open position with your organization. This person has a strong resume and impressed you throughout the interview process. You made them a job offer, contingent on passing a candidate history check. What happens if the investigation turns up one or more red flags that force you to reconsider your hiring decision? Now that your candidate has failed a background check, what should you do?

Here’s a step-by-step guide to help you through this difficult (and sometimes legally fraught) part of the pre-employment screening process.

1. Confirm You Ran the Check on the Correct Person

Background checks are typically run using a person’s name, which can sometimes lead to false positives since many individuals have relatively common names that are shared by others. A check can return criminal convictions or records that don’t belong to your candidate but rather to someone who happens to share their first and last name.

These data inaccuracies can hurt job seekers. What if you were to rescind a job offer from your perfect candidate over a criminal record only to learn that the search found the wrong person, and the criminal record that you discovered doesn’t belong to your candidate? You are now casting aspersions on the candidate’s reputation based on false information, which in turn reflects poorly on your organization.

For these reasons, it is vital for every employer to make sure that they are working with a background reporting firm that has a reputation for running thorough, accurate, and high-quality record searches. At backgroundchecks.com, we take significant steps to avoid false positives with our reports, integrating birthdates, locations, Social Security Numbers, and other details into our candidate checks.

These detailed checks not only help us to make sure that we are finding the right records for the right individuals but also add value four our clients. We can offer address history checks, alias checks, and other screenings that can help provide a fuller picture of a candidate’s past.

2. Carefully Review Your Hiring Policy

Determining whether a candidate fails a background check is an inexact science. What constitutes a failed background check for one employer or job won’t necessarily have the same effect in a different workplace or position.

Employers can streamline the decision-making process around background checks by establishing a thorough hiring policy complete with a background check protocol. This policy should outline which candidate history searches the employer will run for each candidate (or for each department, type of department, or position, if there is variance). It should also incorporate a “decision matrix” that identifies the types of criminal convictions or other findings that the employer will consider grounds to say that a candidate failed their background check after the job offer.

Having these policies in place delivers several clear benefits to the employer. The first is legal protection. Following a clear policy for every hiring situation reduces the likelihood that an employer might treat one candidate (a person of color, for instance) differently from another. Detailed hiring policies can be a protection against discrimination or bias in the hiring process, which reduces legal liability risk.

The second major benefit of such a hiring policy relates to the background history protocol and decision matrix. By identifying the specific red flags that a search might uncover—from crimes to resume lies and beyond—this policy gives hiring managers a map that they can use to determine whether to rescind a job offer or move forward with employment.

A candidate history search may uncover unforeseen circumstances that are not specifically outlined in the decision matrix, in which case the hiring manager and their team will have to decide how to proceed. In most cases, a thorough candidate vetting policy and decision matrix will save employers from having to ask questions about specific red flags every time they review a background report.

3. Notify the Candidate with a Pre-Adverse Action Notice

In consumer reports, “adverse action” refers to a decision made based on a background report that will have a negative impact on a candidate. In employment screenings, “adverse action” typically means that the employer has decided to rescind the candidate’s job offer or otherwise disqualify the candidate from employment consideration.

As part of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), an employer in this situation must provide the candidate with a “pre-adverse action notice.” This notification is intended to let the candidate know that, due to findings in their background, they will no longer be considered for the job at hand.

The notice must outline the specific reason for the adverse action—be it issues with criminal history, credit history, or something else—and must include a copy of the background report that reflects this information. The notice must also include a copy of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s summary of rights.

Finally, the employer must wait a “reasonable” amount of time—typically interpreted to mean five business days or more—to allow the candidate to review the adverse action notice and background check report and respond to them. Before this waiting time has elapsed, the employer cannot finalize any adverse decision based on the candidate’s background checks. The employer cannot formally rescind the candidate’s job offer or hire someone else until at least five business days have passed.

The “reasonable” waiting period gives the candidate time to dispute the findings of the report, should they believe those findings to be inaccurate. A candidate would initiate such a dispute directly through the background reporting company, not through the employer making the adverse decision.

If a candidate does dispute the information that an employer has furnished to them with their pre-adverse communication, the employer must wait to take adverse action until after the dispute is fully resolved.

4. Provide the Candidate with an Adverse Action Notice

If, after following all the requirements listed above, an employer decides to move forward with an adverse decision based on a background check report, they must provide the candidate with an adverse action notice. This document notifies the candidate in writing that the employer has made a final decision to rescind their job offer and disqualify the candidate from employment consideration.

In addition to notifying the candidate in writing of the hiring decision, the adverse action notice must provide several other pieces of information:

• The name, address, and telephone number of the background check company that conducted the screening and prepared the report

• A disclaimer that the background reporting company did not make the adverse decision

• A notification that the candidate has the right to obtain a second free copy of their report at any time during the 62 days following the adverse decision

• A notification that the candidate can contact the reporting agency to dispute any information in the report that they deem to be inaccurate, incomplete, or out of date