Employers use background checks to assess and verify the qualifications and qualities of applicants. Increasingly, employers retain specialised vendors to conduct background checks in order to supplement the information available from an applicant’s CV, references and interviews. However, employers must take care to follow all applicable laws when obtaining and using these reports. In many countries, an employer must notify an applicant prior to conducting background checks and may also need to obtain the individual’s consent. This session will review the types of information employers can, and commonly do, seek about applicants and how employers and the third party vendors engaged by them should go about collecting such information. The session will also discuss the potential liabilities associated with collecting other information, such as increased exposure to discrimination claims.

What you’ll take away:

• The types of information employers can seek about applicants and how to collect it
• The potential liabilities of collecting other information