15 Screening Tips for Hiring Honest Employees

Being a small business myself, I know how difficult it is to find the right employees. And everyone I speak to who is in business has the same problem. Unfortunately too many people lie, cheat and steal and when they come to work for you, they drain company resources until they are fired. It’s best to use prescreening services; otherwise the screening tips below will help you to hire honest employees.

#1 Job Classifieds: Place and ad that says what you want: “Seeking HONEST employees with high moral integrity who seek to thrive to in a motivating environment with many opportunities for advancement and higher pay. Applicants will have a background check and psychological test, reference checks, drug testing and additional screening to determine eligibility.”

#2 Look for incongruence. Resume are often “false advertising” and outright lies, look for red-flags and exaggerations.

#3 Appearance is telling. Someone who is disheveled and unkempt is a sign of character.

#4 Ace interviewees: Interviewees who are well-spoken and ace the interview process may have had lots and lots of jobs.

#5 Use employment applications: Check and verify everything.

#6 Resume Red flags: Look for gaps in employment, multiple workers comp claims, incongruence etc.

#7 Employee ID Verification: Photocopy and determine if identification is legitimate.

#8 Background checks: Necessary but are only one small part of the screening process.

#9 Criminal records checks: Insufficient by themselves and do not detect employee theft unless prosecuted and convicted. Juvenile convictions do not show on a criminal records check.

#10 Drug Testing: Drug and alcohol testing is an absolute must.

#11 Reference checks: Follow up and extensively check.

#12 Driving record checks: Look for red-flags, signs of recklessness, carelessness and aggressiveness.

#13 Employee Credit Check: Bad credit means irresponsible.

#14 Physical exams: Unhealthy body means unhealthy mind

#15 Budget check: Request the applicant write out their monthly expenses. If their expenses exceed their income that’s a red-flag.

Robert Siciliano personal and small business security specialist toADT Small Business Security discussingADT Pulse on Fox News. Disclosures