When and Why to Use Background Checks in Employee Promotion within a Company

Pre-employment screening is a common topic of discourse among employers and employees alike. However, many treat background checks as a one-time job, and this can harm an organization’s productivity and safety. 

As humans are dynamic, their actions and behavior can change with time. For instance, an employee can have a canceled license or even a new court case against them that your company is unaware of. So, ongoing background checks are encouraged to protect your workplace and your organization. They become especially important when you’re considering promoting an employee, as a promotion can grant them more access to sensitive information and more exclusive responsibilities. 

Let’s discuss when and why incorporating background checks into the employee promotion process is important and what benefits it yields for organizations.

When to Conduct Background Checks for Promotions

Consider circumstances where promotions entail the following:

1. Mandatory Licenses

Occupational licenses are mandatory for certain positions, as indicated by National Occupational Licensing Database, so if you promote an employee to these positions, you have to check their licenses. Otherwise, you will be held liable. For instance, Walgreens had to pay $7.5 million in settlements when they failed to vet an employee properly when promoting her to a pharmacist’s position that required a license. This may also cause irreparable damage to your reputation and brand.

2. Access to Finances and Confidential Data

If the new position requires access to finances or confidential company data, it’s best practice to conduct an employment and criminal background history check. This will ensure you do not assign sensitive roles to individuals who have recently displayed a propensity toward drug use, theft, and fraud, protecting your company from potential fraud, loss, or theft. 

3. Management Over Other Employees

If the new position strengthens the managerial control an individual gets over other employees, conducting a check can better ensure there isn’t any new or old misdemeanor record that can harm your workplace’s safety, health, and culture. 

4. Solitary Interaction With Clients

Some of jobs may require dealing with clients alone. Consider the Sue Weaver incident where two men going to service her air ducts ended up assaulting and killing her, committing arson alongside. Both had previous criminal records, including sex offenses. A proper background check by the company before assigning them a client-facing job could have saved her life. 

The Benefits of Background Checks in Employee Promotion

Making data-driven decisions with background checks in employee promotions can yield multiple advantages for your company as well. 

1. Create Safer Spaces

The importance of background checks for a safe and secure workplace can not be understated: your workplace’s safety immensely depends on your due diligence. 

You are responsible for your employees and your client’s well-being when interacting with your representatives. You uphold such moral and legal obligations by conducting the appropriate checks and ensuring a safe environment for every stakeholder involved. 

2. Ensuring Fairness and Productivity 

Some individuals can provide inaccurate information on resumes and interviews. If you promote them based on such false references, educational qualifications, or experience, you deprive hard-working members of your staff of promotions. This can be demotivating to your staff and unintentionally unfair on your part.

Additionally, if you promote an insufficiently trained individual with the expectation that they have depth in experience, chances are, they won’t perform their role well. This can cause workflow or managerial inefficiencies and harm your company’s reputation and goodwill. Timely background checks in your hiring and promotional processes can help you avoid such situations.

3. Protecting Against Losses and Liabilities

Not conducting suitable background checks can also put you in a position where you can face financial losses and get sued. For instance, if a client or employee faces physical or financial harm due to a negligent promotion on your end, actions could be taken against your company. 

You should also note if you promote an unsuitable employee, you may have to train another staff member and use your resources again to reassign the role and make up for the poor-quality hire. Loss of assets can also ensue if you, for instance, promote a driver with a record of driving under the influence and they get into an accident. 

Work With a Background Check Provider

Working with a background screening company like ours can help you proactively ensure your workplace’s safety and enable you to make data-driven promotional decisions. They can enable you to proceed with your operations in an informed yet compliant manner so you can minimize risks and foster a healthy workforce.