Background Checks

What is a background check?

A background check verifies information about a person’s criminal history, education, employment history, and other work-related qualifications or experience. Employers frequently use background checks to learn more about job candidates during the hiring process. Other common use cases for background checks include screening new volunteers and prospective tenants. In a growing number of cases, safety screenings of criminal and court records are used to help create a sense of security for rideshare passengers, dating app users, and members of online communities. 

Background checks can help employers verify the information a candidate provides and validate key credentials like professional licenses and work experience. Searching criminal records, civil court cases, and motor vehicle records (MVRs) can shed light on a candidate’s history, allowing employers to make more informed decisions about hiring. Because the information reported in a background check can be influential in the hiring process, it’s critical that background checks are accurate and compliant with fair hiring laws.

Employers may conduct their own background checks, but many choose to work with a trusted consumer reporting agency (CRA), like GoodHire. Working with a qualified background check provider can streamline the background screening process, deliver accurate results, and help support fairness and compliance with federal, state, and local hiring laws.

How do background checks work?

Whether you’re conducting your own background check or working with a CRA, the process typically starts by verifying the candidate’s identity based on information they provide, including date of birth and Social Security number. From there, a background check for employment may involve searching public information and court records for data on a candidate’s criminal and civil court history, inclusion on government watch lists, or driving records. In addition to database checks, some searches require reaching out to former employers and other organizations to verify a candidate’s employment history, references, or educational background. 

Working with a qualified background check company can lighten the workload for employers. Where employers may need to run down the right sources of information to conduct a check, a trusted CRA, like GoodHire, uses advanced data technology to retrieve information from thousands of online databases and run fast, accurate reports. When necessary, dedicated specialists manually review information to provide extra assurance that employers are making decisions based on accurate, legally-reportable data. 

Because compliance is key, CRAs may offer tools that make navigating the interface with candidates easier. For example, GoodHire offers built-in compliance tools that simplify the candidate consent process and similar compliance workflows. Candidates and the hiring team are all kept up to date as reports are available to review, and candidates have the opportunity to provide additional context on information returned in a report if needed.

Employers that want to conduct their own background checks can follow some of the same processes a CRA would: verifying candidates’ identities, searching public and court records, and tracking down additional information from past employers, references, public agencies (such as licensing boards), and educational institutions. Employers that go it alone may need to do additional legwork to find reliable sources, track information throughout the hiring process, and make sure they comply with all relevant laws regarding background checks. 

What does a background check show?

A background check for employment can return a wide range of information about a candidate’s work history, education, criminal history, credit history, driving history, and more. What shows up on a background check report varies depending on the type of search you choose to conduct. Here are some of the types of background checks employers commonly use in a background screening.

• Criminal background checks report a candidate’s criminal history, which may include misdemeanor and felony criminal convictions, arrest records, and pending criminal charges. Criminal record searches may return federal, state, and county records depending on the scope of the search. 
• Employment verification confirms information about a candidate’s past employment, such as employer names, positions held, and employment dates. 
• Education verification confirms a candidate’s academic enrollment, dates of attendance, and degrees earned. 
• Professional reference checks contact a candidate’s former employer or supervisor and ask open-ended questions to learn more about the candidate’s work experience.
• Driving record checks search the candidate’s motor vehicle records (MVRs) for driving-related information like license status, moving violations, accidents, or DUIs. 
• Employment credit reports show a candidate’s credit history, including accounts in collection and bankruptcies. 
• Civil court records show a candidate’s history of lawsuits, judgments, liens, and other non-criminal court records.
• Drug testing screens candidates for the use of controlled substances, including prescription and illicit drugs.

Employers may choose different types of background checks based on position. For example, employment credit checks are typically conducted when candidates apply for jobs that require handling finances; MVR checks are often critical for employees who drive on the job, especially in positions regulated by the US Department of Transportation. 

What do employers look for in a background check?

Employers use pre-employment background checks to confirm a candidate’s information and qualifications. They may look into a candidate’s employment history and references, licenses and qualification, and criminal background to learn more about a candidate’s criminal history—and comply with laws that require criminal checks for certain safety-sensitive positions, such as teaching or caregiving. 

Employers choose from a long list of possible pre-employment background checks to find the specific information they need to make hiring decisions. Different roles may call for different types of screenings; professional license verification may be legally required in healthcare settings, for example. In any case, verifying a candidate’s licensing, work experience, and education can also confirm that they haven’t misrepresented their qualifications.

An internal background check policy can help standardize the background check process while helping you comply with federal, state, and local laws. Creating a formal policy may encourage you to determine precisely what you’re looking for in a background check, so you can seek out the specific information you need and support consistent, fair hiring practices.

How to get a background check

Employers can conduct their own pre-employment background checks or work with a background check company, like GoodHire. Background checks for employment begin by consulting your organization’s background check policy, which should outline who will be subject to pre-employment screening, which background checks they’ll undergo, and what steps need to be taken if a background check returns results that require further consideration. 

Conducting checks internally can be time-consuming. Someone on staff, typically an HR team member, needs to search public databases and court records, and contact public agencies like the DMV or courthouses, sometimes in multiple locations. Some document requests may need to even be made by mail. Checking references means reaching out to contacts and scheduling time to talk, which is itself a time challenge. Meanwhile, time is often spent on maintaining high standards for accuracy, communication with candidates, and compliance with federal, state, and local hiring laws.

Working with a qualified background check provider, like GoodHire, reduces your staff’s workload and mitigates risk for busy HR teams. GoodHire offers employers a streamlined process with increased accuracy and faster access to reports. A user-friendly dashboard keeps hiring managers—and candidates—up to speed on progress and on track with key compliance matters, such as obtaining consent and completing the adverse action process. 

How to run personal background checks

Are you wondering what to expect if a prospective employer runs a background check on you? You can obtain your own public records by contacting state and county courthouses in the jurisdictions where you’ve lived or may have records on file. Costs vary by state and municipality, but they typically range from a few dollars to more than $25 per record. 

You can also have a background check service run a background report for you. Although online background checks are available from a range of providers, background screening services that cater only to consumers may not have access to the proprietary resources and specialized databases many employers use.

As a best practice, consider looking for a service that complies with the federal FCRA. Pre-employment and housing screenings in the US must comply with the FCRA, which specifies the nature of the information that can be included in background checks, and defines your rights concerning the use of that information.

When you order a personal background check, you’ll need to provide basic personal information, like your name and Social Security number, in order for the background check provider to quickly and accurately match you with your records. Finding out what shows up on your background check report allows you to avoid surprises and address potential errors that may appear. 

How employers can maintain compliance

Compliance is a key concern for employers conducting pre-employment background checks. Background check laws and industry regulations exist at the federal level but can also vary by state and local jurisdiction. Before conducting background checks, employers need to familiarize themselves with all relevant laws to ensure they’re meeting legal requirements.

Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)

Employers that work with consumer reporting agencies (CRAs), like GoodHire, to conduct pre-employment background checks must comply with the FCRA. The FCRA is a federal law that requires employers to obtain written consent from candidates before conducting background checks, and to follow an adverse action process if a report contains information that may negatively impact their hiring decision, among other provisions.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission offers guidance to help employers avoid using background checks in a manner that might discriminate against candidates on the basis of age, race, color, national origin, sex (including sexual orientation and gender identity), religion, and disability. The EEOC advises employers to use the “nature-time-nature” test when assessing a candidate’s criminal history, taking into consideration the nature of the criminal offense, the time that has elapsed since the offense occurred, and the relevance of the offense to the position at hand.

Ban the Box laws

Ban the Box laws emerged in 1998, with Hawaii as the first state to pass a law prohibiting employers from asking job candidates about their criminal history until after a conditional offer of employment was made. Since then, many state and local jurisdictions have followed suit, with a focus on removing barriers that make it difficult for justice-impacted individuals to get jobs.

Additional background check laws vary by state and local jurisdiction, and can be the result of wide-ranging shifts in the legal environment. For example, drug testing laws have changed with the legalization of the medical and recreational use of marijuana. 

It’s important to know the laws that impact your organization based both on your location and where candidates and employees live. Where there are multiple laws in effect, employers may want to comply with the strictest ones to avoid potential penalties and legal liability. Working with a trusted CRA may help: GoodHire stays current with federal, state, and local background check laws, and eases the compliance burden with built-in compliance tools, saving you time and giving you confidence in your results.

How much does a background check cost?

When you conduct a background check yourself, the costs can vary widely. While some public records searches may be free, some cost anywhere from a few dollars to $25 per search or more, depending on the type of search and jurisdiction. Additionally, conducting your own background check may have associated time costs if your hiring manager or HR team have to devote valuable time to tracking down information themselves.

Working with a background check provider may offer significant efficiencies over doing your own. Your internal team won’t need to spend time (and generate overhead) conducting checks, and improved accuracy combined with streamlined workflow can reduce your overall turnaround time—helping you fill open roles faster. At GoodHire, for example, customizable screening packages allow you to pay only for the checks you need, with add-ons available to meet your industry’s specific requirements. 

How long does a background check take?

Turnaround times for background check reports vary depending on the type and scope of the reports, as well as who is conducting them. Some criminal record and other online database searches may return results in a matter of seconds; manual searches for county court records in person or checking references by phone may take multiple days, weeks, or longer.

Employers conducting their own background checks may find it takes a bit more time to complete a background check. Locating the right public information sources, conducting searches, and following up where needed can all be time-consuming for busy HR teams and hiring managers.

Working with a CRA, like GoodHire, can speed up the search process. GoodHire’s team of specialists uses proprietary databases and advanced technology to complete most reports in less than 24 hours. GoodHire also saves employers time after the searches are done, by organizing data into easy-to-read reports that only show relevant results, and automated workflows help support the adjudication process so all parties are up-to-date and employers remain compliant throughout.

How far back does a background check go?

Different background screenings can have different lookback periods. Some screenings, like education and employment verification, can look back at a lifetime of information without time limits. Other checks may be limited to only a few years by law.

The FCRA restricts how far back CRAs can report information in a background check for employment. Charges that do not result in a conviction, civil suits and judgments, and collections on credit reports, for example, may be reported for up to seven years. Bankruptcies may be reported for up to ten years; criminal convictions may be reported indefinitely. 

State and local fair hiring laws may also limit how far back a background check can go. For example, in California, the Investigative Consumer Reporting Agency Act (ICRAA) prohibits CRAs from reporting conviction records that are more than seven years old.

Finally, some searches may be limited by the availability of records. In many states, MVRs may only report information from the previous 3-5 years. A person’s juvenile records may be sealed when they turn 18, also depending on the jurisdiction. Even unrestricted information, such as employment history, may be limited if an employer goes out of business and is no longer reachable.

What are the safest and least safe cities in America?

To help businesses understand their importance and to reveal the cities where criminal background checks might be more useful to business owners, GoodHire analyzed the 100 largest cities by population size to uncover the safest and least safe cities in America.

To do so, GoodHire reviewed FBI Crime Data — property, violent, and society crime — and ranked each city by its rate of offenses per 1,000 people for each of the three offense types. GoodHire then assigned a total rank that weighted crimes against persons and crimes against property at 40% and crimes against society at 20%. 

The final safety score is a weighted sum of the ranks for the three offense types. The safest city in America receives the lowest safety score (up to 100) and the least safe city receives the highest safety score (up to 100). View the full report.

Get a background check with GoodHire

Pre-employment background checks can help employers verify that the information a candidate provides on a job application or resume checks out, and review important facts relevant to their professional work that may influence hiring decisions. Either way, employers need to conduct fair, accurate background checks that comply with the law.

Partnering with a trusted background check service, like GoodHire, can help. GoodHire streamlines the background check process to provide fast, accurate reports. GoodHire offers 100+ screening options, including criminal background checks, MVR checks, drug screening, reference checks, and more. Plus, our compliance tools make it easy to follow the rules established under the FCRA, plus any additional restrictions that apply to your local jurisdiction. Get started today.