Navigating Australia’s Employment Screening Minefield: Criminal record Checks

Navigating Australia’s Employment Screening Minefield: Criminal record Checks

Congratulations! Your organisation will introduce a mandatory criminal record check for all new and existing employees. Great idea! Ok now what?
Because of so many screening options available, what should Hr and Security Departments be going after to make certain their screening procedures are meeting their industry’s requirements and community expectations?


• 1 in 5 have Working together with Children Check Holders have criminal histories
• 1 in 5 data breaches is because malicious insiders
• 1 in 4 coming from all complaints received by the Australian Human Rights Commission were based on criminal records discrimination.
National Police Checks (NPCs) will be the garden variety “go-to” screen as well as your insurer will reward you which has a reassuring nod. However, here are some things worth your shown to ensure a stressful discrimination claim is not in your horizon.
1. The Job Advertisement should clearly claim that a employment screening services criminal record check is necessary for the role. (eg. “Candidates require via a background screen and become awarded a favourable Suitability Qualification.”). If you go for one basic NPC you will must add words like “those people who have criminal records will never be automatically barred from applying”
2. OK, let’s point out that you now have a Candidate that would be suitable for the work, nevertheless the NPC originates back which has a Disclosable Court Outcome (DCO).
3. Now your beefed up “security background investigations checking department” must thoroughly check out criminal history past. Preferably staff must have a personnel vetting qualification and experience. As the Humans Rights Commission has told you, your brand-new department should consider the following factors:
• the seriousness in the conviction or offence and (as mentioned) its relevance on the job showcased
• whether in terms of the offence there is a finding of guilt but without conviction, indicating a less serious look at the offence by the courts
• the ages of you in the event the offences occurred
• the period of time since offence occurred
• whether you includes a pattern of offences
• the circumstances where the offence occurred, for example when it was an offence that occurred in the work, domestic or personal context
• whether the applicant’s circumstances have changed since offence was committed (for example, past substance abuse)
• whether the offence has become decriminalised by Parliament or it had been an offence overseas but not around australia
• the attitude in the job applicant on their previous offending behaviour
• references from those who understand the offending history.
4. Remember, the more information that you simply obtain, the larger the likelihood that you can exercise reasonable judgment in assessing the link relating to the criminal records as well as the inherent requirements in the job. However, you ought to know until this extra scrutiny places added pressures for the Candidates.
To find out more visit https://www.humanrights.gov.au/publications/human-rights-record-contents

About us:
About Cleard.life
Cleard.life augments (enhances) or supplements (improves) just how organisations reach background screening determinations. It steps up organisation’s personnel security efforts and fortifies the organisation’s security standards.
It gives you a standalone vetting check that is recognised being an Organisational Suitability Assessment Screening Qualification.

Cleard.our life is business unit of the Australian national security vetting agency leader, Crown Vetting. Cleard.life allows organisations to gain access to the same suitability standard checks used on national security clearances, however a 100-fold faster as well as a fraction in the cost. The same methodology that government vetting agencies use to discover the suitability of an person to gain access to to SECRET and TOP SECRET facts are now to HR Professionals, Recruiters & Employers.
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Antonio Dickerson

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