Criminal checks

The Red Cross recently made a public relations error. In the wake of fraudulent activity connected with Hurricane Katrina, they decided to implement a background check for all of their volunteers. Their background check release form, however, went beyond the standard waiver to examine criminal records. It included permission to pull credit reports as well. Not surprisingly, many people felt that this was very intrusive and the Red Cross ultimately removed references to credit reports from its release form.

How did the Red Cross make such a mistake? Apparently they had been considering using background checks since 2004. Like many organizations, they did not appreciate the subtleties involved in volunteer background checks. By their nature, background checks have the potential to be perceived as invasive. Since volunteers are donating time and energy to the organization, they can resent these safeguards unless they are properly introduced. Credit reports, as we explained in an earlier post, should be used sparingly. Finally, some consideration must be given to payment — who will bear the cost? Most people will not enjoy paying for the right to […]