How Often Should I Perform Background Checks On Volunteers

Estimated reading time: 5 minutes

I recently had someone ask me how oft they should runcriminal background checks on all volunteers.

The respond is, every volunteer should go through a thorough background screening as part of theirvolunteer application process and have it rechecked every couple of years.

Gone are the days when background checks were just done on people who work with children or contributions.

Information technology is essential to know the criminal background of every volunteer in your church.

We know that people tin, and do, plow their lives around afterward they embrace Christian principles.

However, you probably don't want someone who wasconvicted of embezzlement counting your weekly offering.

This screening process is important because of the legal risks that now face churches and their responsibility for screening both employees and volunteers.

These risks have increased every bit a result of a rising number of litigations involving religious nonprofit organizations.

The good news is technology is improving every solar day and criminal databases are showtime to cross state lines and states are sharing this information.

While we are not where we demand to be, the engineering science has improved resulting in improved processing times and results.

There are some vendors that offering updated reports every bit new data becomes bachelor.

Identifying the all-time screening vendor for your arrangement may take a picayune inquiry, but there are many options to choose from.

Even if at that place is a vendor you are currently using, it is merely wisdom to shop them every couple of years.

Pricing and products are constantly changing then take some time to ensure y'all are using the best available vendor.

Your church insurance visitor tin give you lot a referral for a background cheque vendor.

nine Groundwork Check Vendor Considerations

1. Turnaround Time –Time matters.

The final thing you desire is to have a volunteer sitting around waiting for this check to come back.

Ask how long it typically takes to get a background check completed and returned.

Call a couple of different vendors and so you tin can determine the average turnaround time.

Nigh background check systems can now render a check within minutes then make certain the vendor you pick tin offer a quick turnaround.

ii. Price –Price does matter.

If you are recruiting and processing hundreds of volunteers a yr, the groundwork screening can be costly.

Enquire what the fees are and compare that price with other vendors.

Also, inquire as to whether there are discounts available for multiple screenings.

Everything is negotiable so be bold and inquire for discounts.

3. Information Tracked –The goal of the background check is to acquire most the criminal history of a potential volunteer.

Enquire the vendor how thorough the screening is and what type of information is reported.

how often should we run background checks on volunteers

Find out how thorough the information is, and if it covers all counties in the United States.

iv. Reach of Information –We live in a mobile order and people move – especially when they have a by that they want to leave behind.

Make sure the data y'all are paying for includes state, regional and national reporting.

5. Process for Submission –Submitting the background check request should exist easy, quick and efficient.

Inquire the vendor to walk you through their process to ensure that it doesn't consume an unnecessary corporeality of your time.

Y'all are paying for a fast efficient procedure.

6. Ease of Use –People don't take the fourth dimension to read cluttered reports so make sure the reporting is a tool that you can browse apace to see results.

Inquire for a sample report and decide how easy is information technology to read and interpret the results.

If something doesn't make sense to y'all, ask for clarification.

7. Availability of Updated Information –Even though yous should rerun background checks every couple of years, you lot want to make sure you take admission to updated information.

Ask if the vendor provides updated background data as information technology becomes available.

8. Client Service –No one likes dealing with a vendor that does not focus on client service.

Ask how the organization responds to client complaints and what their process is to reply to technical issues.

If you are in a hurry to get a screening back, you lot don't want to fight a technical glitch in the program.

9. Recommendations From Current Users –Enquire the vendor for a list of current clients and their contact information.

Call them and attempt to find out if they are happy with the production, but more importantly, with the service of the vendor.

Groundwork checks are a crucial part of thevolunteer management process and should exist taken seriously to ensure that your organization knows those people who are involved in helping y'all achieve your mission.

If you are an SCM member, you lot tin canadmission a sample groundwork check dominance form by logging in hither .

If you are not a member but would like to get one,you can learn more than about membership options hither .

How ofttimes practice yous, re-screen volunteers?