Queens County, New York Court Records

Queens, formally known as Queens County, is a part of the New York City metropolitan area and the largest of New York City's boroughs. It has a population of 2.4 million people. Nearby counties include Bronx, Kings, Nassau, and New York. Some of the largest employers in Queens include JetBlue, Glaceau, and the NYPD.

Queens is one of the most prominent destinations for job-seekers nationwide, especially within the metro area. The dominant feature of Long Island, Queens, is an exceptionally dense urban zone second only in local population to Brooklyn. Employers in this area must therefore take special care with their hiring procedures due to many unknown factors in this labor pool.

Because of its high immigration rate, it is possible for an employer to encounter applicants with criminal records in their past. Likewise, it is more likely that you will encounter some individuals trying to hide that past, especially if it is serious. Therefore, adopting a background check process that prioritizes thoroughness is essential to safe, efficient hiring in Queens.

New York City's legislators have expressed continuous concern about hiring practices in the City and have thus enacted numerous Fair Chance/"Ban the Box" ordinances that affect businesses throughout the region. This includes Queens County. Private employers in Queens must abide by the regulations set forth by the NYC government. These regulations include:

• To inquire into an applicant's criminal history, you must first make them a conditional offer of employment.
• You cannot withdraw a conditional offer without reason. All candidates must be evaluated as individuals.
• You must provide candidates with their background reports.
• If you wish to rescind an offer, you must explain your reasoning, provide a five business days response period, and re-evaluate your decision based on any additional information.
• Some record types may not be considered, such as unsealed violations or ACDs (adjournment in contemplation of dismissal).
• Convictions are only considered disqualifying if they directly relate to the job role or would represent a serious safety hazard.
• Positive marijuana drug tests are not disqualifying.
• Testing for marijuana is illegal.

Hiring in the New York City area demands that employers engage more deeply with the regulatory compliance process. However, navigating this maze of legislation successfully ensures you can still use background checks appropriately. Once you've taken all the appropriate steps to reach the stage where you can begin checking a candidate's history, you should seek to review as many sources as possible simultaneously. Most often, this means choosing our US OneSEARCH. This product instantly provides criminal history reports generated from our professionally-maintained repository of millions of criminal records. Our online coverage map shows all our information sources in detail.

However, not all states or counties make their public records easy to access through third-party reporting agencies. In the core New York City area, criminal record requests must be made to the New York State Office of Court Administration. The OCA offers a bundled background check with results from 14 metro area counties, including Queens. The OCA check costs $95 and must be requested by mail or through the official government website.

Background reports sourced from county court records may include the subject's:

• Name
• Offense/Charge
• Sentence
• Disposition

Enhance your confidence level as you explore the applicants to your open positions in Queens and better manage hiring risks in the New York City metropolitan area today with help from backgroundchecks.com.