Okay, so you have recruited just the right candidate.   According to his resume his credentials are impeccable.  He has all the required skill sets and vital experience in dealing with all the disciplines the job will require.   His references provide you with glowing reviews.   You have conducted background checks as part of your employment screening process, and your candidate emerges squeaky clean.  Nothing that is noteworthy.

Or maybe there is some kid stuff type offenses on…

Last week,  the New York Times ran an editorial regarding employment screening and how employment background checks are often inaccurate and cause otherwise innocent people their chances for employment.   The editorial requested that the supervising agencies get a tighter control around the CRA's or Consumer Reporting Agencies.    Upon reading the editorial, more than a few recruiters and employers, to say nothing of Consumer Reporting Agencies,  had their proverbial bowels in a…

Most people at least know someone who has padded his business expenses and filed for "creative" reimbursements on their expense accounts.  In some cases, employers do not have much oversight.  And in cases with which I have been familiar, often the employers don't care or turn a blind eye, thinking it's a better way to offer raises without having to pay the additional taxes and benefits.  In fact, if anything, it's a tax write-off.

Padding your business expenses can be regarded as a…

Many are aware of diploma mills. Diploma mills are nefarious services that either issue forged diplomas from legitimate universities or have bogus online unaccredited colleges that sell your a diploma earned for "life experience.   For a certain fee you can get a Bachelor's Degree.  A few bucks more and you can get a Master's or Doctorate.

It's a scam.  As Corra Group, a background checking agency, we uncover bogus degrees issued from diploma mills with relative frequency.  Some are…

The Federal Bureau of Investigation has initiated a new campaign to thwart the increased use of  industrial espionage.   According to a recent article in the Wall Street Journal ,  the new campaign will focus on the prevention of  corporate espionage.   The FBI will feature…

Fish got to swim, and birds got to fly.  And some employment candidates have to lie.  About their education, mainly.   Given the competitive job market, small wonder some will...ahem...stretch the truth in order to gain leverage when looking for a job.   It's understandable.  It's also pretty stupid.

Today,with most employers conducting education verification background checks as part of their employment screening programs, most likely the fictitious claim about having graduated or…

We are here at last!  Moving.  The "M" Word.   Rule of thumb, whatever you think you have to move, multiply it by five.  And then allow for surprises.  But here we are in El Segundo.  

Corra Group has moved in to its larger office space in order to better service its growing list of clients. The employment background checking service is now headquartered at 201 Continental Blvd, Suite 107, El Segundo, California.

“We are in at last,” said Nick Gustavson, Co-Founder of…

Corra Group, the Los Angeles based background checking service, will soon be moving its corporate headquarters from its current location in the Marina Del Rey. On May 1st, 2012 the company will occupy a larger office space in El Segundo, California.

“We are really excited about the move,” said Nick Gustavson, Co-Founder of Corra Group. “We spent months looking, before we found just the right building. The new office space will facilitate our growth as we hire additional personnel and…

Bullying seems to be the new buzzword.  Be it in the schoolyard or on the job, there are increased outcries about one person trying to dominate another through intimidation.  Most of the time the intimidation employed is psychological.  But often enough it is physical as well.    It is nothing to minimize, but then by the reaction of some, it would appear bullying only recently appeared on the scene.   With the plethora of articles, seminars, workshops,  and panel discussions, bullying or…

Once upon a time a dear friend told me about the issues he was having in his apparel manufacturing plant where certain employees were in business for themselves.  This meant their raking off inventory, dresses, blouses, and such, and selling the stolen merchandise to anyone who would pay cash.   Upon doing researcher, my friend found is otherwise unaccounted merchandise in the flea markets in downtown Los Angeles and with different off price venues.   The stealing or shrinkage, as it was…

Workplace violence can take place in different forms.  The more common variety of workplace violence is more or less the hazards of the job.   Healthcare workers and emergency medical workers often face abuse.  some of it is physical, but most of it is verbal abuse from ailing and often drugged out patients.    Taxi drivers, retail clerks, and others having to deal face to face with the public are subjected to robberies and battery, sometimes murder.  Law enforcement and…

Of course, other background checks may also be a judgment call.  When an employer or staffing group is recruiting candidates, minor criminal records may not necessarily mitigate a candidate's performance or his ability to behave himself on the job.  The previous criminal record, if not too overwhelming, may relate to youthful folly or love gone wrong.  It may relate to the one mistake he made in his life and has since cleaned up his act.  He is now the reputable citizen, has worked hard for…

Once upon a time, a college degree was considered a ticket to success.  If you had a diploma, a sheepskin, if you will, you could easily find a job.  You would make more money.  You were almost guaranteed a promising start to a career.  Not so much anymore.

An article in the …

Criminal records background checks are not a one size fits all.   While most employers do conduct criminal background checks as part of their employment screening program, the idea is to use them wisely.  Wisely, in this case, means don't be indiscriminate to where you can get yourself in trouble with the  Equal  Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC).   Pepsi Beverages just found its blanket policy, regarding criminal records background checks, cost them a hefty $3.1 Million in settlement…

As some may have noticed, not everything I write about concerns employment screening,staffing, or the pitfalls of the job market in this current environment.  I have done a fair share of articles about all that, and my concerns are with the rudiments of staffing  and job acquisition and how they apply to employment screening.

But then there is the other side, that literary side the creeps in every now and then, causing me to abandoned all  he distractions in the wee hours of…

There are a number of employers who rely almost solely on criminal database searches as background checks for their employment screening services.  This is not a great idea.   There are definite advantages to database searches, as they can provide  employers with a quick review of their candidates.    In general, criminal database searches return instantly, which allows the employer to examine any potential criminal records and decide whether to move forward with additional background checks…

In some ways avoiding the kind of  abusive and criminal sex practices that have been plaguing Penn State University is a fairly easy task.  It is a matter of conducting background checks not only for pre-employment screening but periodically to determine if your staff has been convicted of any criminal and sexual offenses.  But then what about the first timers?  Or, rather, those who were never caught?

Determining whether sex abuses are taking place, particularly in the employment…

Apparently, there are flaws in the Texas State Criminal Records System.  This is the state-wide criminal search put out by the Department of Public Safety.  As many investigators and employers use this both for research and employment screening, one would think these background checks would be accurate and up to date.   Not the case.

According to an article on KENS, Channel Five, in San Antonio, there are some alarming discrepancies in the criminal records.  One…

The Occupy Wall Street Movement has caused its fair share of consternation to a good many persons and organizations.  In certain areas where Occupy Whatever is taking place, small business owners are losing business due to the congregations outside their doors.  Often regular customers will not patronize businesses where large crowds are gathered outside or nearby.   People are intimidated.  It's that simple, really.

Then, of course, there has been vandalism where various businesses…

It goes without saying that the Marines are an excellent fighting force.  Be it the United States Marines or the  British Royal Marines, tens of thousands of dollars have gone into training so that these fighting units can be the most formidable in combat.

But then once the Marine is an ex-Marine, there is a question as to what to do with those skill sets.  Can't really use the harder core aspects in the typical office setting, lest one's fellow employees look askance at your crawling…