With a population of about 850,000, New Haven is the third-largest county in Connecticut and home to several of the state’s major cities. Nearby counties include Fairfield, Hartford, Middlesex, and Litchfield. Once a manufacturing powerhouse, the county’s economy today is service-focused, with crucial employers including Yale University and United Illuminating.
The presence of a prestigious university and two large cities make New Haven County’s job market a lively one. With a constant cycle of new arrivals brought in by the university and the area’s thriving economy, there is competition for every open job. For businesses, this trend leads to increased opportunities for identifying talented workers. However, it also comes with an increased risk of encountering unsuitable candidates.
How do you draw a line between the two groups and identify who should not receive a job offer? The answer is a smarter approach to pre-employment screening.
A cover letter and resume aren’t enough to enable a business to make a clear determination about a candidate. Interviews won’t always tell a complete story, either. Verifying an individual’s history and learning about their past requires a specific approach: use of a criminal background check. Whether you wish to protect your business from claims of negligent hiring or have a legal obligation to vet new hires, a streamlined background check process is a must-have.
That process should begin with local considerations, including court records held by New Haven County. While analyzing these records, consider what level of risk an applicant could pose to your business or its patrons. Serious felonies and other offenses at the local level may indicate unsuitability. However, the opposite is not always true–no local record does not indicate a clean slate. You must also consider records from anywhere that your candidate has lived in the past.
Always remember to use background checks legally. Connecticut’s “ban the box” rules apply to all private businesses in New Haven County: no business may inquire into criminal histories on its application form or before an interview. Criminal charges cannot be the sole basis of disqualification for candidates with a Certificate of Rehabilitation. Additionally, you must obtain consent before running a background check. Federal rules, including the FCRA and Civil Rights Act, also apply.
With a plan for compliance in place, you may begin vetting new applicants. At backgroundchecks.com, we provide access to robust tools for obtaining criminal history data. A county-level background check in New Haven County is an excellent place to begin. Next, broaden your view with our US OneSEARCH to cover other counties and states.
These products reflect information from systems that are unaffiliated with backgroundchecks.com and maintained by state and local authorities. Data is subject to change. For urgent situations, we provide direct record searches conducted at the local county courthouse. Results are available in one to three working days.
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Take advantage of the ongoing arrival of new talent in New Haven County to hire the best candidates for your business with help from backgroundchecks.com.
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