When you’re a Florida employer considering a new candidate for hire or even a potential business partner, looking for “corporate background checks Hillsborough County, FL” is an important part of the process. You want to make sure that you’re hiring someone who is honest and qualified, and corporate background checks can help you do just that. In this article, we’ll discuss what the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) is and how it relates to corporate background checks. We’ll also talk about the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and how they regulate corporate background checks. Finally, we’ll give you some tips on how to dispose of your background check information securely.

A federal agency created to enforce anti-discrimination in the workplace, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) protects workers by pursuing legal cases and claims placed against companies accused of discrimination. Originally founded along with the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the EEOC saw many important legislative changes that were put in place to protect employees in addition to the Civil Rights Act, including:

·      The Equal Pay Act of 1963, which aimed to bridge the wage gap between male-bodied and female-bodied persons.

·      Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967, which protects employees over 40 years old from age discrimination.

·      Rehabilitation Act of 1973, which serves to protect employees who are differently-abled.

·      Pregnancy Discrimination Act of 1976, which protects working mothers from discrimination based on their pregnancy status.

·      Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, which further protects individuals with disabilities.

·      Civil Rights Act of 1991, which primarily served to protect individuals (namely women) from workplace harassment and entitled them to collect legal damages.

·      Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act of 2009, which determines that the statute of limitations of 180 days for filing a lawsuit based on equal pay will reset with each new paycheck affected by acts of discrimination.

While it might seem complicated and tricky to navigate so many acts and so much legislation around discrimination and “protected” classes, the answer to avoiding discrimination is relatively simple: treat everyone equally. For example, if you are planning on carrying out corporate background checks on an upcoming client, do so indiscriminately, with each new client you take on. People who are considered “protected classes” are those who may be discriminated against based on:

·      Age

·      Race

·      Ethnicity

·      Sex

·      Sexual orientation

·      Skin color

·      Religion or spiritual preferences

·      Family history or medical history

·      Or folks with a disability

Whether or not a candidate for hire falls into a protected class, all prospective employees must be subjected to background screening indiscriminately, or not at all. It is imperative that you refrain from asking questions that might implicate a candidate into one of these protected classes prior to a conditional job offer as well.

So, if you are going to indiscriminately apply corporate background checks in Hillsborough County, FL to every client you wish to work with, you may end up with a lot of sensitive information on your hand. This confronts you with the issue of whether to store the information or to destroy it—and the answer is, that you must do both. In fact, the EEOC indicates that a candidate’s background screening results must be kept securely for a full year after the creation of their screening report, or after personnel action was taken—whichever comes second.

After the year of keeping the records has elapsed, the outdated sensitive information must be disposed of by burning, shredding, pulverizing, or permanently deleting electronic information so that it cannot be accessed or reconstructed again. These methods are considered “secure” disposal methods.

Named for the self-titled Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act into law in September of 1914, the FTC was originally created to promote healthy competition in the workforce while protecting consumers by providing accurate information. Another aspect of the FTC is preventing unfair competitive practices in the capitalistic landscape and deceptive practices towards consumers.

The FTC aims to protect both healthy competition in the marketplace as well as the average consumer from deception by way of law enforcement practices, advancing legislation, planning conferences and workshops, and creating easy to understand education programs for both consumers and businesses in an every-changing global marketplace.

Nobody wants to have to reject a prospective employee or business partner based on negative information received in a corporate background check, but these things do happen. In the event that you do need to take adverse action based on a background screening, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) does further protect the candidate. It does so first by requiring businesses to acquire consent for a background check, to provide a copy of the background report that influenced your business decision, and a summary of their rights. The FCRA also dictates that after an adverse action has been taken, the corporation or entity must provide the applicant or business with:

·      The contact information of the company responsible for creating the report

·      The fact that they were rejected because of the intelligence gathered

·      The fact that the company compiling did not themselves make the decision not to hire

·      And that the individual or entity has the right to dispute the report and to acquire a supplemental, free report within 60 days of the incident

Corporate background checks Hillsborough County, FL offer opportunities for informed business decisions, but also provide room for legal entanglements, if they are not carried out properly. With so much legislation in place protecting both candidates for hire, corporations, and the customers the businesses hope to serve, it’s important to be sure that you are operating on the right side of the law—but also that you are reaping the full benefits that come with institutions like the FTC. This will not only protect your employees and your customers but will move your business forward as well.

Looking for professional solutions for corporate background checks in Hillsborough County, FL? Contact Alpha and Omega today for a consultation!