A HIRING DILEMMA: Pre-Employment Background Checks.

• Author: GUDDE, LEVI

Courts have long held that companies have a duty and a responsibility to establish and maintain, a safe and secure work environment for their employees. They must also provide a safe and secure business environment for their customers and clients. And that means more than just eliminating physical hazards such as wet and slippery floors. It also means hiring the right people. It is a simple fact that a good employee makes a company money. A bad one can cost a fortune.

One of the most egregious and costly ways the wrong employee can cost a company money is if the employer does not conduct a reasonable background check on the individual, and then that person, while engaged in company business, or on company property, commits an act or crime that causes another person--a fellow employee, a client or a customer-injury or harm.

One example is if an employee, driving a company vehicle, causes a motor vehicle accident that injures or kills another person. Let's say the employee is found to have been driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs at the time of the accident. Further, it is discovered that the employee has several previous arrests and convictions for the same offense. Arrests and convictions that could have been discovered if a proper background check had been conducted prior to hiring.

Next, let's say one employee assaults and deliberately harms or injures a fellow employee while one or both of them are on duty, or on company property. After the assault, it is discovered that the perpetrator has a criminal history that includes assaults and similar incidents. Again, information that would have been available if a proper background check had been performed.

Employers Held Liable for Employees

In such cases, courts have held that employers can be guilty of negligent hiring practices and therefore liable if they do not conduct reasonable and prudent background checks on prospective new employees.

"In our society today, employer liability is increasing, making it vital that they make informed hiring decisions," says Bill Holmes, manager/investigator for H.I.R.E (Hiring Information Resource Exchange) of Alaska, an Anchorage company with nationwide ties that specializes in background investigations.

"In any liability lawsuit of this nature, the plaintiff's attorney will always go for the deepest pocket. And that's usually the company the defendant works for," says Holmes. "Since these costs come right off the bottom line, larger...