HR: 4061, p.1
Employment Background Checks
Scope: All persons hired through competitive recruitments, and all persons employed in
selected currently filled positions.
Definitions: “Competitive recruitment” means
1) all recruitments for employment positions at the college, whether full-time or
part-time, faculty or staff, in a permanent, benefited position,
2) all positions for employment in the Children’s Learning Center, and
3) all positions as counselors or instructors for Kids’ Camp or Teen Camp
(whether or not those camps are renamed), and
4) all positions as adjunct or part-time, non-benefited faculty, who are teaching
one or more courses designated in the Colleague course master as a youth
course.
Competitive recruitments do not include employees in permanent, benefited positions
whose position descriptions are revised. A person who is employed by the college on a
periodic, temporary basis (e.g., camp counselors) will not have a Criminal Background
Check conducted on him or her for subsequent periodic, temporary employment with the
college provided that his or her I-9 form is not required to be reverified unless the person
has not been able to submit fingerprints for a fingerprint check despite three attempts at
doing so.
“Credit Background Check” includes social security number verification, past and
present addresses, credit history, credit worthiness, bankruptcy filings, and other creditrelated record.
“Criminal Background Check” includes social security number verification, past and
present addresses, and actual or alleged criminal history, records or violations, including
arrests and convictions, regardless of whether they are misdemeanors or felonies.
“Fingerprint Check” includes submission of a person’s fingerprints to obtain national and
Maryland criminal history records through designated Maryland law enforcement offices.
“Motor Vehicle Check” includes social security number verification, past and present
addresses, driving history, motor vehicle authority records, traffic citations and any other
vehicular-related record or violation.
Policy:
The college will conduct background investigations to determine the suitability of
persons for employment at the college, the veracity of employment applications and with
a goal of improving the protection of persons, funds, property, and other assets.
HR: 4061, p.2
When
Background
Check
Positions
Standard
At hiring
through a
Competitive
Recruitment.
Credit
Background
Check
Selected positions in
which the incumbent
may have the ability to
embezzle or steal cash,
checks, credit card
receipts, travelers’
checks or money orders.
At hiring
through a
Competitive
Recruitment.
Criminal
Background
Check
All Competitive
Recruitment positions.
At hiring.
Fingerprint
Check
Persons employed in the
Children’s Learning
Center, and for Kids’
Camps and Teen Camps
(regardless of whether
the camps are renamed)
Credit checks that demonstrate late
payments, garnishments or other
adverse credit activity may result in an
adverse employment action unless it is
determined that the adverse credit
activity was due to unforeseeable
circumstances not reasonably within the
person’s control. Bankruptcies shall
not, in and of themselves, be cause for
an adverse employment action.
Criminal convictions, whether felonies
or misdemeanors, may be cause for
adverse employment action depending
upon the nature of the position for
which the person is applying, the type
and severity of the offense for which a
conviction was obtained, the date of the
conviction and other factors.
Determinations based on those factors
will be made by human resources and
the division head to which the position
ultimately reports. A conviction that is
not disclosed by an applicant on the
employment application will result in an
adverse employment action.
Criminal convictions, whether felonies
or misdemeanors, may be cause for
adverse employment action depending
upon the nature of the position for
which the person is applying, the type
and severity of the offense for which a
conviction was obtained, the date of the
conviction and other factors.
Determinations based on those factors
will be made by human resources and
the division head to which the position
ultimately reports. A conviction that is
not disclosed by an applicant on the
employment application will result in an
adverse employment action.
HR: 4061, p.3
Prior to the
addition of a
person’s name
to the list of
persons
authorized to
drive college
vehicles and
annually.
Motor
Vehicle
Check
All persons listed
voluntarily on the
college’s list of persons
authorized to drive
college vehicles and all
persons in positions
requiring the person to
drive college vehicles.
More than two points in the most recent
12 month period covered by the Motor
Vehicle Check will result in a
suspension of privileges to drive a
college vehicle. If the affected
individual is required to drive a college
vehicle in the course of his or her
employment, an adverse employment
action may result.
Procedures:
1.
2.
The college will comply with the Fair Credit Reporting Act and those portions of
the Maryland Code which regulate the use of information gathered by consumer
reporting agencies for employment purposes. As required by those laws, adverse
employment actions will not be taken against an employee or applicant based in
whole or in part upon information in a consumer report unless the
employee/applicant is given a copy of the consumer report in advance of the
adverse employment action, as well as a written description of the
employee/applicant’s rights under applicable law, including his or her rights to
challenge the truthfulness of the information in the consumer report. The Federal
Trade Commission’s “Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting
Act” shall be provided to employees and applicants as required by law and upon
request.
Only the Executive Director of Human Resources and the Employee Recruiting
Specialist will be allowed to review or consider the results of background checks
set forth in this policy, except that 1) legal counsel shall also review or consider
the results to provide legal advice and defend claims and potential claims, and 2)
the division head to which the position ultimately reports shall also review or
consider results of Criminal Background Checks and Fingerprint Checks if such
results show one or more criminal convictions. Only the Executive Director of
Human Resources shall be authorized to make a decision on an adverse
employment action as a result of the background checks set forth in this policy,
except that this may be delegated by either that person or by that person’s
supervisor if the Executive Director of Human Resources is unavailable for more
than one college business day and that determinations due to the nature, type and
age of criminal convictions shall be made together with the division head to
which the position ultimately reports. Background check results shall be
maintained separately from personnel files and in a secure and confidential
manner. The applicable member of President’s Counsel shall be informed that an
employee/applicant is ineligible for employment.
HR: 4061, p.4
3.
4.
5.
Background checks conducted at hiring through a competitive recruitment will be
conducted only after a job offer is made and should ordinarily be completed prior
to a person’s first day of employment. Where not completed within that time
frame, employment is conditional subject to the completion of the appropriate
background check(s) with satisfactory results. Application for Fingerprint Checks
must be submitted to the Maryland Department of Public Safety and Correctional
Services on or before the first day of employment.
The college’s records of results of background checks of applicants who do not,
as a result of that application, become an employee of the college, shall be
destroyed within one year after the two year anniversary of the conclusion of the
recruitment for the position for which the person applied. The college’s records
of results of background checks of employees shall be destroyed within three
years after the one year anniversary of the employee’s last date of employment
with the college.
Fingerprint Checks are governed by applicable sections of the Maryland Code,
Family Law, rather than by the Fair Credit Reporting Act or coordinate portions
of the Maryland Code, Commercial Law.
Reference:
Fair Credit Reporting Act, 15 U.S.C. §§1681et seq.
Maryland Code, Commercial Law, sections 14-1201 et seq.
Maryland Code, Family Law, sections 5-560 et seq.
For more information contact: Executive Director of Human Resources at extension
7724.
HRD: 7/07
HRD: 5/07
HRD: 6/06