Hiring Employees
Are you ready to hire new employees for your business? Maybe you want to bring in some new people for an expansion or perhaps you’re just opening. Performing background checks and drug tests are often essential parts of the hiring process.
When you place an advertisement for employment you are casting a wide net across many people, and you can’t always tell for sure that a potential new hire is always telling the truth, as everyone wants to put their best foot forward. Most of the time, these checks and tests are standard procedure and occur at the onset of an offer for employment.
The first step is to place your ad and then sort the responses into potential yes and no categories. For those employees who seem like a good match for your company, you will then want to interview them either over the phone or in person.
Once you have selected your candidates and put them through your company’s initial interview process, you can ask them to sign documents approving a background check and or drug test, with fulfillment of the offer contingent upon the results.
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Background Checks
Submitting a candidate’s information for a background check is fairly simple now that we have online request strategies and payment options to utilize. With a name, address, and Social Security number, you can pay a small fee to the National Criminal Database Search for a copy of a potential employee’s background check nationwide.
Misdemeanors may or may not interfere with a person’s ability to perform the job depending on your requirements. Someone who lost their license due to a DUI is obviously not the right candidate for a Catering Driver position. Felonies are obviously more serious and should be considered potential red flags.
There are some instances, however, where people with felonies are in vocational rehabilitation working with others to find suitable employment. Some companies do hire individuals with felony records, and there may be government incentives to do so, if you so choose.
Drug Tests
Drug testing a potential hire is always a good idea before you officially hire the individual, so you can ensure that he or she is a responsible person without an addiction disorder or criminal behavior.
You can purchase small test kits in bulk that can be administered orally, as well as cups to dip testing strips into a urine sample. These tests provide a positive or negative result right away, which will alert you to a need for confirmation.
A lab will still need to affirm the results, usually with a urine test, although you may choose not to hire them because of the first test result. Urine testing is often provided by a separate medical facility, and you may or may not pay the administrative fees, which can average around $40 for a 5-panel test, which includes Amphetamines, Opiates, Cocaine, PCP, and THC. There are many other comprehensive panels that can be included in the assay but they cost more and may require a blood or hair sample as well.
Insurance
Full disclosure for insurance reports is an important part of receiving your reimbursement if an accident or injury occurs. If an employee is under the influence, especially on the job, you may be responsible for the damages, and this can get expensive rather quickly.
Safety in the workplace starts with attention and prevention, and someone who is on drugs might be less likely to pay attention to their tasks and their environment, especially with pills and the use of opiates.
Someone on “Uppers” may do their job well, but it may be at the expense of their life. They will pay with their health and mental stability, and you, as their employer, will pay with denied insurance claims and some major risks to your business.
Another reason to invest in a “Drug Free Work Place” is to take advantage of the federal Workers Compensation discounts that they offer. If you can guarantee a drug free work place, you can get discounts on your worker’s compensation insurance.
Legal Rights
Some people do have legal rights when it comes to testing positively for drugs; however, in most cases, when someone tests positive, it costs them the job offer. Some individuals with disabilities may be cleared to take an opioid prescriptio
n that is synthetic like Tramadol. This will trigger a false positive on a drug test; however, it is not false because they are prescribed low levels of the drug, so there is a grey area there that is going to need refinement as we work toward a better approach to drug policy.
Medical Marijuana is another legal boundary that needs to be further investigated. There are now over 32 studied compounds from marijuana species varieties and THC is only one of them, specifically the first one identified. As more people are being prescribed medical marijuana, with positive results, we must assess whether it is a possible issue to include it with the truly dangerous drugs that compose the rest of the category.
Safety and Loss Prevention
Some accidents can occur whether your employees are diligent or not, and if someone is careless, this poses an even bigger risk. Maybe a potential hire was once fired because he caught a previous store on fire and went to jail for property damage. This may equate to large payouts from insurance claims, so it is important to drug test your employees and do background-checks as well to protect yourself and your company. This will also prevent loss of inventory, due to the mishandling of items or theft.
When sifting through the new hire process, it is important to put a significant emphasis on reliable drug testing and thorough background checks to protect your company from future legal ramifications. Both of these procedures plays a part in streamlining the hiring process and maintaining a drug-free, consistent environment in which your employees can thrive and be productive.
