A continually increasing number of government regulations for businesses makes it harder to keep current on all mandates, especially in relation to screening and hiring.
Even as the only employee of your business, if you decide to hire one or more employees, you must adhere to the same laws that larger companies follow.
Privacy Rights Clearinghouse offers an Employer Checklist and Tips section in their Small Business Owner Background Check Guide: http://www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs16b-smallbus.htm#11
Also, it’s wise to always be aware of the laws within the FCRA (Fair Credit Reporting Act) in regards to background checks and screening: http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/031224fcra.pdf
In addition to background and reference checks, it’s recommended you gauge candidates’ abilities related to the job through a range of assessment methods, such as personality profiling tests and handwriting analysis. In doing so, you reduce your risk of an expensive bad hire enormously.
Copyright © 2010 Scott Petullo