In North America, Asia, EMEA, and Latin America, criminal record checks have reached their highest levels in four years. Drug screening is common practice in North America, with many states in the US relaxing rules on marijuana. While only 10% of North American companies currently engage in it, social media screening is becoming more prevalent.
Employers often conduct background checks as part of the hiring process. In this article, we’ll explore the different types of background checks that are becoming more prevalent in various regions, including North America, EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa), Asia, and Latin America.
Top editors have got you covered for curated stories delivered directly to your inbox each weekday.
Companies worldwide are grappling with the level of scrutiny they should apply to job candidates, including drug screenings and social media checks.
A recent survey found that work history, identity information, and education checks were the most commonly conducted background reviews on job candidates globally.
Criminal record checks have reached their highest rate in North America, Asia-Pacific, EMEA (Europe, Middle East, and Africa), and Latin America in four years. According to the 2023 global benchmark report by HireRight, a leading provider of background screening services, criminal record checks remain the most widely conducted pre-employment checks in North America. The report gathered responses from approximately 2,000 participants between mid-February and mid-March 2022.
In EMEA, employment checks take the top spot for the most widely conducted assessments, while education checks are the most prevalent in the Asia-Pacific region. Employment checks in EMEA have continued to rise year over year, with nine out of ten respondents from the area indicating that they verify the work history of their candidates.
Meanwhile, 87% of Asia-Pacific respondents conduct education checks, compared to 46% in North America and 71% in EMEA.
Caroline Smith, Vice President and Deputy General Counsel at HireRight, stated that background screening helps employers reduce the risk associated with each new hire, whether it is a legal requirement, part of the recruitment process to weed out unqualified individuals, or even to protect the company’s reputation and brand name.
In light of recent events, more North American companies may consider conducting background checks on candidates, as exemplified by New York Rep. George Santos, who lied about his background during his campaign. Santos faced calls for his resignation after news reports revealed his fabrications, including false claims about his education, work history, and family background. Santos was later hit with criminal charges by the Justice Department.
Drug and health screening, another type of background check, remains most common in North America, with 61% of respondents implementing such measures. However, drug testing is less prevalent in Asia-Pacific (33% of respondents) and EMEA (20%).
The survey also highlighted the impact of efforts to decriminalize marijuana in some US states, with 19% of North American companies considering halting or discontinuing marijuana testing unless required by law. Several prestigious Wall Street banks have already eliminated marijuana testing.
The complexity of coordination, time, and cost are factors that influence whether companies choose to conduct drug testing, particularly in industries where it is not mandatory.
Regarding social media screening, there has been a global increase in organizations performing social media checks. Approximately 20% of EMEA participants engage in social media screening, while the figures are 17% for Asia-Pacific and only 10% for North American companies during the pre-employment screening process. Globally, around 30% of respondents indicated a lack of sufficient knowledge about social media screening.
Alonzo Martinez, Associate General Counsel at HireRight, noted that numerous US states had passed laws restricting an employer’s access to prospective candidates’ or workers’ social media accounts. Martinez emphasized the importance of employers avoiding bias in employment decisions and considering only non-discriminatory and job-relevant information during the hiring process.
While many employers do not conduct pre-screenings, there have been reports of workers losing their jobs due to their social media posts. Instances include a Meta worker fired for posting on TikTok, a Walmart employee dismissed for discussing her workday, and a Denver tech worker terminated for sharing her paycheck on TikTok.
