Background Screening Can Ensure A Workplace Free Of Sexual Harassment

The Indian Bar Association (INBA) conducted a survey on 6047 members across India shows that a major part of the respondents has experienced instances of sexual harassment in some or other format the workplace. Though there is a common notion that senior position is characteristically associated with harassment at the workplace, the survey shows that harassment can take place at any level in an organization. Even vendors, business partners, supervisors, junior or mid-level managers have also been identified as offenders. Sexual-harassment at Workplace is not a new term. It has a long history and is quite a serious concern for social activists and HR managers worldwide. Many cases of sexual harassments went obscure either due to power pressure or due to lack of support for fighting.

Here are five most suggested approaches recruiters may consider for preventing cases of sexual harassment right from the time of recruitment with the help of background screening.

Include Employee referrals can as an assessment step

If you allow candidates to submit names of individuals with whom they have formally interacted with or directly worked with, you are basically removing a chance of employing a toxic-employee. This is because, in reference to their past interactions, the referring employee can at least attest the fact that there is a high or low probability that the candidate can prove to be a harasser or harmful employee. However one can also tamper with the referrals which you can reduce by making the interviewee aware that they will be held responsible for the kind of the referrals they are giving, for there will be a background check that labels employees who have made a toxic referral.

Identifying a harasser during the peer interview

This is yet another important step because the fellow team members will be the ones who will suffer the most if a bad hire is made. An interview with the team members can also help to screen the candidates if they have the probability of being hazardous. The process of peer interview in recent times is the most effective in the opinion of the employees who can look for pre-identified signs that reveal if the candidate has the probability of being a harasser creating nuisance in the workplace.

Criminal background checks

One of the easiest ways to determine the probability of the candidates being hazardous is through a criminal background check.If a candidate has a past of sexual harassment which took the form of sexual assault, such case will surely appear in criminal records. Background verification companies can also trace non-sealed public records of civil harassment cases if the individual has been involved in any of them.

Ask them situational questions that might reveal toxic behaviors

There is a chance that candidates reveal a history of sexual harassment if they have any while answering traditional past behavioral questions. A more clarified result can be expected if you ask them how they would handle a sexual harassment issue specific to the current employment scenario. Situational questions in every way produce better results. You can also ask them questions like "In a situation where you yourself were actually witnessing sexual harassment, what would you do?" try to look for any hidden expression in their answers like not reporting the incident or playing safe. You can also ask them some questions as to how they will handle a situation of workplace conflicts, harassment, and what steps they will take to resolve it. You can also ask them if they have difficulty in working with some specific types of employees in their new job and how would they handle such a situation.

Use existing personality and behavioral tests

Though this assessment does not directly identify harassers, there are a number of lateral behavioral and psychological tests that have already been administered that might shed some light on how a prospective candidate must behave and treats their fellow employees. Although some of these tests have not been legalized, they are surely helpful in revealing any toxic behavior. These tests typically encompass courteousness, integrity, emotional intelligence, values assessment, character, attitude, morality, conscientiousness, and ethics of the candidate. However, if you decide to use any of these behavioral and psychological tests first make sure that you are assessing the results in light of the bad behaviors on the job. It is difficult to assess a potential harmful employee just by judging their body language, voice inflection, and cultural fitness assessments during the short interview process.

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About The Author Nivedita Gupta is a content marketer and writes on business topics for various clients including cFirst Background Checks, a leading background check company in the US.