Employee Background Check Blog

People sometimes use the terms "background check" and "criminal record check" interchangeably. But they are two different things. Let's dig in and clarify what we mean.

At Good Egg, we work closely with human resource departments large and small. Here's our take on three HR trends to watch in 2021, particularly as they relate to recruitment, culture management, and background checks.

In case you've been distracted in 2020 (who hasn't?), here's a roundup of our most viewed blog posts from the last 12 months. (Not all were published this year, but all are still relevant.) Happy reading!

When it comes to the people you hire, character matters. After all, you want a safe and productive workforce filled with people who reflect your company's values, right? But here's the thing: A person’s character is not a single data point. Instead, ...

At the beginning of 2020, which feels like 100 years ago, we made a bold declaration that we wanted to be the best reviewed background check company in the galaxy. Why? Well, real reviews from real people (customers and candidates alike) can provide ...

According to this article, one of the top challenges facing human resources this decade is HR culture management. But what is HR culture management? And what does it have to do with employee screening anyway? Let's dig in...

While 2020 has been a wild ride for everyone—a ride that continues to influence the holiday season—one thing that hasn't changed is this: You should always background check your seasonal workers. Back in May of 2019, we did a deep dive into all the ...

As more employers embrace remote workforces thanks to the pandemic, more recruitment efforts will take place remotely as well. Here are four hiring mistakes to avoid as you recruit new people to work from home.

COVID-19 caused many companies to shift to remote workforces. But then something interesting happened along the way: Many companies realized their employees could still be productive, even if they weren't in the office. As a result, more and more of ...

We recently wrote an article about the Professional Background Screening Association and its accreditation process. In short, it's smart to work with a PBSA-accredited background check company (like Good Egg). The article brought up a question, ...

Delivering an amazing candidate experience is incredibly important for a variety of reasons. For one thing, the experience will give prospective employees a taste of what it might be like to work for your company. First impressions matter. Even if ...

When evaluating background screening services, one piece of advice you'll often hear is this: Choose a vendor that's been accredited by the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA). But what does accreditation even mean? And why should ...

Many prospects and customers ask us the following question: Is social media screening ethical? Often, what they're really asking is whether social media screening is legal. Legal and ethical are very different things. So let's unpack both questions ...

The background check industry is super competitive. (No doubt, you already know this.) While we do believe Good Egg is one of your best options (if not the very best!), we'd be remiss if we didn't acknowledge that there are other quality background ...

No doubt, you're already familiar with the concept of a company "brand," which involves how customers perceive your company and its products or services. But did you know that you also need to think about your brand from your employees' perspectives ...

Why does the Department of Transportation (DOT) require such vigorous background checks? The bottom line is safety—the safety of your drivers, passengers, and other people on the road. For the purpose of this article, we're going to give a ...

Searching for a new employee screening company? Keep our background check vendor checklist handy and see how many companies meet the criteria outlined below.

One of the most common questions we hear from prospective clients is this: Why is pre-employment background screening important? Let's dig into four compelling reasons...

At Good Egg, we talk a lot about candidate experience, and for good reason. Surveys show that 60% of job candidates have had poor experiences during the hiring process. Not only that, but bad experiences can result in tough consequences for the ...

Thanks to the gig economy as well as Millennials and Gen Z workers who don't stay at jobs for longer than a handful of years, it might be easy to wonder why you should bother using employment reference check services in the first place. Aren't they ...

Do you work in HR? Do you ever struggle when it comes to hiring? Below, you'll find strategies for overcoming three common HR challenges in recruitment.

If you’ve noticed that your background screening and drug testing results are taking longer – you’re not alone.

You need reliable background screening services for your organization. But let's back up a second. What does "reliable," in this context, even mean? And how can you evaluate background check companies for reliability anyway? So glad you asked! Keep ...

If job candidates go through a frustrating application process with your organization, even if they get the gig, how will the experience affect their perception of your company? Remember, you want eager, excited employees at the outset. If a ...

Companies with remote workforces—especially those that had to make the move suddenly due to COVID-19—should consider ongoing social media monitoring of employees. Here are three reasons why.

We often say that a solid employee screening program will help protect employees, customers, and the business itself. Today, let's discuss exactly how certain types of background checks accomplish this.

If you landed here, it's probably because your head is spinning regarding marijuana drug testing, and no wonder. As of right now, 33 states in the U.S. and the District of Columbia have legalized the use of marijuana either for medicinal or ...

Those who come out against ongoing monitoring are often quick to liken it to spying and "Big Brother"—the concept made famous in George Orwell's novel 1984. Wikipedia explains, "In modern culture, the term 'Big Brother' has entered the lexicon as a ...

If you conduct pre-employment drug tests, you might think that's enough, but the problem with pre-hire drug screenings is they capture only one point in time.

Drug test positivity rates increased by 43 percent in April 2020 compared to the month prior. This is according to data collected by Good Egg from their workplace drug testing results. “This is a very significant increase,” said Scott Mogensen, ...

From a global pandemic to social unrest, the country has gone through a lot of changes in the last few months. At Good Egg, one thing we’ve noticed during this time as well, is an increase in demand for social media screening.

Integrating your applicant tracking system (ATS) with your background check vendor can be one of the smartest moves you make (provided it's done right—more on that in a bit).

Creating great candidate experiences is an excellent way to make a positive first impression on your prospective employees. On the flip side, a poor experience might sour someone's perception of your company—even if only subliminally—before they ...

Here’s a secret: you probably have more employees driving on behalf of your company than you might think. The problem? This creates additional liability for your organization. The good news? MVR background checks and ongoing MVR monitoring can help ...

The pandemic has plunged everyone into uncertainty, small businesses in particular. Many are looking for ways to save money by cutting expenses. While it might sound self-serving for us to say "don't cut back on your background check orders," ...

One way to get the best candidates to say "YES" to your job offer is by making sure they have a great experience throughout every stage of the hiring process—and this most certainly includes background checks. Think about it: If a competitor's ...

As the country reopens from pandemic lockdown and more and more companies relax their hiring freezes, one background check in particular will be a must on a go-forward basis: the social media background check. Why? Here are three reasons:

People don't always know what they don't know, right? This is especially true for background checks. If you've been doing background checks the same way for years, or you "inherited" an existing process, and/or the process doesn't appear to be ...

Want to up your game when it comes to creating an effective employee screening program? Follow these best practices of employer background checks.

At Good Egg, we guide our clients on what to include in their pre-employment background checks. Here's a question we sometimes get: should the employer obtain workers' compensation records? We're presenting this question to Melissa Snyder, Good ...

One of the most common employee screening questions we get is this one: are social media background checks REALLY necessary? The short answer is YES. Social media background checks are absolutely critical when hiring today.

You might have heard about Walgreens having to pay a 7.5 million-dollar settlement because it employed an unlicensed pharmacist for over a decade. While we can only speculate how something like this happened, the case does highlight several points ...

You've likely heard this statement many times over the last several weeks, but these are, indeed, unprecedented times. Our hearts go out to everyone affected by COVID-19, including those who are suffering from illness, grieving the loss of a loved ...

We get many questions regarding background check lookback periods, and like so many things in life, the answer is "it depends." It can depend on the type of background check you're ordering, the state you're operating in, as well as other ...

We've all heard sensational news reports about people who've shared something so horrendous online, the content goes viral and the resulting backlash has big consequences, like job termination. One recent example involves an EMT who made racist ...

If you have employees driving on behalf of your company, this creates risk, such as rising insurance premiums, negligent entrustment liability, and pricey lawsuits. At Good Egg, we recommend a three-prong background check solution to mitigate these ...

Let's face it: the U.S. labor market remains incredibly competitive, thanks to a low unemployment rate. As a result, recruiting quality workers has become increasingly challenging. CNN reported in 2018 that the job market was so good that some ...

When it comes to background checks, fairness and accuracy are essential. Here's how to make sure your employee screening process is exactly that.

At the writing of this article, 33 states in the United States and the District of Columbia have legalized the use of marijuana either for medicinal or recreational purposes (or both). Other jurisdictions at the municipal level are also legalizing ...

As CFO, you're constantly looking for ways to rein in wasteful spending and lower operational expenses. One area that's easy to overlook is employee screening, since the day-to-day tasks associated with background checks typically fall under HR's ...

We get lots of questions regarding the 7-year "lookback" rule for reporting adverse information. We're turning over this incredibly important question to Melissa Snyder, Good Egg's attorney and compliance manager. Melissa is FCRA-Advanced Certified ...

Because so many states in the U.S. have legalized the use of marijuana (either for medicinal purposes, recreational purposes, or both), creating drug testing policies that include marijuana has become challenging. After all, if so many states are ...

At the start of a new year and new decade, many companies embark on bold missions, and at Good Egg, we're no different. If you've been following us at all over the last twelve months, you've probably heard us mention our desire to be the ...

We've written a lot about motor vehicle record (MVR) checks. If you want to read deeply about various aspects of MVRs, check out the following... What's an MVR Report and Why Should More Companies Care? 5 Benefits of MVR Monitoring Ask the Attorney: ...

We recently wrote an in-depth article about why background checks can sometimes take so long. There are many reasons for delays—and most are beyond a background check vendor's control. The good news? There are ways to boost background check ...

Here's a secret: you likely have many more people driving on behalf of your company than you realize. Think sales reps, customer service folks, lawyers, accountants, consultants, and so forth. Even if these workers use their own vehicles, if they're ...

In our latest installment of "Ask the Attorney," we answer questions concerning the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), which went into effect in California on January 1, 2020. Melissa Snyder, FCRA-Advanced Certified from the Professional ...

What a pre-employment background check contains is very much in the eye of the beholder—or, in this case, the eye of the employer. Several factors will influence what employers decide to include in their pre-employment background checks, such as ...

When it comes to evaluating the cost of background check services, people often grapple with certain pervasive myths. Here are four of the most common: Basic screenings are sufficient. Ongoing monitoring is a pricey extra. Online "instant" ...

Not all background check service partners are created equal, something you likely already know. If you're auditing your current background check vendor and/or vetting potential partners, this blog post will help. In it, you'll find 10 questions to ...

At the writing of this article, 33 states in the United States have legalized the use of marijuana either for medicinal or for recreational purposes (or both). Other jurisdictions at the municipal level are also legalizing marijuana. The federal ...

We've been writing a series of blog posts about criminal record checks. Here are links in case you missed our earlier installments: What is a criminal background check? Understanding the criminal background check process The argument for ongoing ...

This is the second installment in our new feature "Ask the Attorney." (Read the first issue on salary history bans—and what this means for background check procedures.) Melissa Snyder, FCRA-Advanced Certified from the Professional Background ...

If you've been following our blog in "real time," you've likely been reading our series of articles on various criminal history check topics. Here's a list in case you missed any installments: What is a criminal background check? Understanding the ...

Pre-employment background checks are common. GlobalHR reports that a 2017 survey showed "background checks are nearly universal among employers, who turn to these pre-employment screenings largely to ensure the safety of their workplaces." The type ...

In a previous blog post, we defined what a criminal background check is (and what it includes). Now, it's time to discuss the criminal background check process itself. Let's say an organization is interested in hiring an applicant, pending the ...

We're excited to launch a new feature on our blog called "Ask the Attorney." Many of our readers have questions regarding the legal landscape when it comes to pre-employment and post-hire screenings, and no wonder: laws are constantly changing and ...

Because so many people use the term "criminal background check" —in HR, the news media, and endless movies and TV shows—it's easy for us at Good Egg to think everyone must understand what a criminal history check is. Yet whenever we stop and take a ...

When it comes to social media screening, we find most people embrace the concept, even though they tend to know little about the day-to-day reality of what, exactly, social media screening entails. In fact, many dangerous myths abound. It's time to ...

Your company wants to launch an effective drug and alcohol testing program. So what are some best practices it should follow? Keep reading...

At Good Egg, we receive many questions regarding motor vehicle record (MVR) reports. What are they? What's on them? Why should employers care? Let's dig in...

One of the most basic—and important—goals of background checks is to help keep people safe, something that's vital on college campuses filled with students, faculty, administration, staff, vendors, and visitors.

At Good Egg headquarters, we were recently talking movies, and someone mentioned that the beloved Judy Garland film The Wizard of Oz is turning 80 (!) this year.

When it comes to evaluating drug testing providers, follow these three important reminders. (You can also download our comprehensive guide on how to choose an employee screening vendor.)

If you work in HR, you probably crave speedy recruitment, streamlined applicant tracking, and easy ways to monitor the entire hiring workflow.

Making news in recent days has been the Capital One data breach affecting 106 million people in the US and Canada. A former Capital One employee carried out the hack in March/April of 2019 and bragged about it online.

If you're a recruiter who wants to WOW, don't make these mistakes when it comes to background checks.

We field many questions regarding instant drug tests vs. lab-based testing. Below, our drug screening experts give our readers the scoop.

In a perfect world, we'd be able to complete all employment background checks within two to four business days. But we all know this world is far from perfect. There are many reasons for delays—and most are beyond a background check vendor's ...

If you're launching an alcohol and drug testing program, it's imperative that you have a clear and comprehensive written policy. Here are six tips to guide you in its creation.

As Good Egg's marketing manager, I pay close attention to what our customers and prospective customers talk about when it comes to employee screening. I also listen closely to the Good Egg sales team.

Summer's almost here, which means seasonal businesses will be ramping up their workforces. Think ice cream shacks, farms/orchards, amusement parks, garden centers, landscaping companies, construction sites, summer sports leagues, golf courses—the ...

The way HR managers approach employee screening will differ for many reasons, including something we don't discuss much: the particular situation the HR manager finds himself or herself in.

The labels themselves indicate the obvious difference between on-site and off-site drug testing. But let's dig a little deeper.

Since the New York City Fair Chance Act (FCA) went into effect in 2017, employers have been prohibited from referring to criminal history in job postings, employment applications, and interviews.

Let's talk about the specimen collected during a drug test: urine, oral fluid, or hair. While urine is typically the most common specimen that employers test, oral fluid (saliva) and hair have been gaining traction in recent years. Here are some ...

If you're developing a drug-screening program for your organization, you likely have questions about drug panels. We recently sat down with one of our screening experts to answer some FAQs.

We receive many questions about background checks, so we thought we'd compile three of the most common here.

It wasn't all that long ago that background screening was a paper-based process. Sadly, many companies still do it this way. The problem? Paper-based checks are time consuming, inefficient, and can lead to inaccuracies/errors. That said, we know ...

Millennials (those born between 1981 and 2000) have taken over (and have transformed) the workforce. Gen Z (those born between 1996 and 2012) will soon follow. The way employers recruit and hire Millennial and Gen Z job candidates has changed as ...

Our employee screening philosophy is straightforward: in order to get a complete picture of a person, you need to consider their past, present, and future behaviors (we call this the Good Egg Screening Continuum®).

Social media. Love it or hate it, the reality is people are using it—and at record numbers.

Let's face it: social media is a big part of most people's lives. In 2017, there were 2.46 billion social media users, and projections suggest 2.77 billion people will be using social media in 2019.

It's easy to spout off startling statistics, but without context, those stats remain just that: startling. Understanding a statistic's relevance is what makes a statistic useful. A good stat should help you make a more informed decision regarding ...

Since 70 million people in the U.S. have a criminal record, it makes sense that employers conduct criminal background checks so they can make informed decisions about applicants. The problem is that many myths abound regarding criminal background ...

As the year winds down, something on the minds of many HR professionals is whether they have the hiring and retention practices in place they’ll need for 2019. This evaluation begins with a critical look at their current background screening ...

As you begin planning for next year, now's a good time to carefully consider your current background screening program - not simply in terms of cost, but also in terms of the value it's providing your business.

With FCRA compliance litigation rising yet again in 2017, major companies such as Uber, J.P. Morgan, and Avis saw multi-million dollar settlements for FCRA noncompliance issues. According to the latest statistics from WebRecon LLC, this was the 17th ...

Note: This article is an excerpt from our new ebook, “The Employee Engagement Dilemma: Why Happy Employees Aren’t Always Engaged – And What You Can do About it.” To download and read the full ebook, click here.