In Australia, background checks are an essential part of the recruitment process, helping employers make informed hiring decisions and ensure they are hiring trustworthy, qualified individuals.
Whether you are hiring a new employee or reviewing your current team, conducting thorough background checks can help prevent issues like fraud, theft, and workplace misconduct.
However, it’s essential to follow the correct procedures to ensure you are complying with Australian privacy and anti-discrimination laws as we covered in What Legislation Applies When Running a Background Check in Australia.
This blog post will guide you through the process of conducting background checks on potential and current employees in Australia, outlining the types of checks you can carry out, the legal considerations, and best practices.
Why Conduct Background Checks?
Before diving into the process, it’s important to understand why background checks are necessary.
In Australia, employers can run background checks to:
- Verify qualifications: Ensuring that a candidate has the education, certifications, or licences they claim to have.
- Assess criminal history: Identifying any criminal convictions that may affect the employee’s suitability for a specific role.
- Check employment history: Verifying past employment to confirm the candidate’s work experience and responsibilities.
- Evaluate character and integrity: Through references or social media checks, assessing whether the candidate aligns with your company’s values and culture.
Background checks can be especially critical in industries that require trust, safety, or the handling of sensitive information, such as healthcare, education, finance, and security.
Types of Background Checks You Can Conduct
Here are some of the most common background checks that Australian employers conduct on potential and current employees:
Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check
A Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCCHC) is one of the most common checks run by employers in Australia. This check reveals whether the candidate has any criminal convictions recorded in their name. It’s particularly important for roles involving vulnerable individuals (e.g., children or the elderly), access to sensitive financial information, or positions of authority. Click here to order a copy of your NCCHC – yes you can run a criminal history check on yourself.
Before conducting a criminal background check, employers must obtain written consent from the candidate. Additionally, certain minor offences may be considered “spent” after a set period, and employers aren’t allowed to inquire about them. It’s essential to be aware of the spent convictions laws in your state or territory, as they vary across jurisdictions.
Employment History Verification
Verifying an employee’s previous employment is a straightforward way to confirm their work experience and avoid fraud. This can be done by contacting past employers or checking references provided by the candidate. You can confirm dates of employment, job titles, and roles.
While this check is relatively simple, it’s important to maintain consistency in how you conduct reference checks across all candidates to avoid any legal concerns regarding discrimination or privacy violations.
Education and Qualification Verification
Verifying an applicant’s education and professional qualifications ensures they have the necessary credentials for the role. This check typically involves confirming the authenticity of degrees, diplomas, and certificates from educational institutions or professional bodies.
Education verification can be carried out directly with the institution or through third-party providers that specialise in background checks, such as Certn. For roles that require specific certifications or licenses (e.g., healthcare workers, accountants, or teachers), it’s essential to verify that these are current and valid.
Credit Check
In some cases, particularly for roles that involve financial management or access to sensitive financial data, employers may run a credit check. This helps assess a candidate’s financial responsibility and integrity, particularly if the role involves handling money or other valuable assets.
However, credit checks are subject to strict regulations under the Privacy Act 1988 and should only be performed when the candidate has consented. Additionally, employers must ensure that credit history is only considered if it is relevant to the role being filled.
Reference Checks
Reference checks provide an opportunity to gain insight into a candidate’s character and work ethic. These checks involve contacting professional or personal references provided by the candidate to discuss their strengths, weaknesses, and overall performance in past roles.
It’s important to be consistent in how you conduct reference checks and ensure that questions are related to the job requirements. You should also be cautious of asking questions that might violate privacy or anti-discrimination laws, such as questions about a candidate’s marital status, religion, or personal beliefs.
Social Media Screening
Social media can offer insights into a candidate’s character and how they present themselves online. Checking a candidate’s social media profiles can provide an idea of their professionalism, personality, and any potential red flags (e.g., inappropriate behaviour or discriminatory posts).
However, be aware that social media checks must be done compliantly and should only focus on information that’s directly relevant to the job. Be mindful of the potential for bias, as some social media activity may not reflect a candidate’s true abilities or work-related qualities. Check with your legal team to see whether it makes sense to use these checks in your hiring process, and whether a third-party vendor might make the process more fair.
Legal Considerations for Background Checks in Australia
Again, as we covered in What Legislation Applies When Running a Background Check in Australia, employers must comply with several key pieces of legislation to protect candidates’ rights and avoid potential legal issues:
Privacy Act 1988
The Privacy Act 1988 governs the collection, storage, and use of personal information, including background check data.
Employers must ensure they:
- Obtain written consent from the candidate before running any background checks.
- Limit the collection of personal information to what is necessary for the role.
- Store data securely and ensure it is only accessible to authorised personnel.
- Disclose any criminal history or other sensitive information only when it’s required by law or with the consent of the individual.
Fair Work Act 2009
The Fair Work Act 2009 ensures fair treatment in the workplace, and this includes how employers use background check data. Employers cannot make discriminatory decisions based on an individual’s criminal history unless it is directly relevant to the job. For example, you cannot reject a candidate for a minor offence that happened many years ago if it has no bearing on the role.
Anti-Discrimination Legislation
Under Australia’s anti-discrimination laws, it is illegal to discriminate against a job candidate on the basis of criminal history in many cases.
The Equal Opportunity Act 2010 (Vic) and other state-based laws, such as the Anti-Discrimination Act 1977 (NSW) and the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 (Cth), all protect individuals from unfair treatment based on certain characteristics, including prior criminal convictions.
Employers must treat all candidates fairly and avoid using criminal history as the sole basis for employment decisions, especially if it’s not relevant to the role.
Spent Convictions Legislation
Australia has spent convictions legislation in place, which means that after a certain period (usually 10 years for adults), some criminal convictions may no longer need to be disclosed by the individual or considered by the employer. Be aware of the laws in your state or territory regarding spent convictions, as they vary.
Best Practices for Conducting Background Checks
As a general, rule, here’s what we recommend:
- Be Transparent: Always inform candidates about the background check process and seek their consent before collecting any data.
- Focus on Relevance: Ensure that the background check is relevant to the role being filled and avoid collecting unnecessary information.
- Respect Privacy: Protect personal information and ensure it is used only for its intended purpose.
- Stay Consistent: Use the same process for all candidates to avoid bias or discrimination.
- Follow Legal Guidelines: Ensure compliance with privacy, anti-discrimination, and employment laws to avoid legal risks.
Industry-Leading Background Checks in Australia
Conducting background checks on potential and current employees in Australia is essential for ensuring the safety, security, and integrity of your workplace. However, it’s important to navigate the process carefully, following Australian privacy laws and ensuring that checks are relevant to the role and conducted ethically.
By staying informed about the legal requirements and best practices, you can make confident and compliant decisions that will help protect your business and create a fair, transparent hiring process.
