A California court recently found a hospital negligent for actions committed by a subcontractor who was working in their facility. The hospital’s argument that background screening was the responsibility of the staffing company didn’t hold up in court and ultimately the plaintiff was permitted to sue Tenant Healthcare directly.

This may seem like an obvious guffaw on the part of the hospital but it begs the question for many staffing companies, consultancies or other businesses that outsource personnel: are they losing business opportunities and contracts because they aren’t taking the necessary precautions and including thorough background screening as part of every new hire practice? Worse, are they risking good business relationship by placing unscreened contractors at a customer location?

Consider the details on this case in an excerpt from Security Management Magazine.

As we enter the season of new graduates, everyone is excited about the idea of fresh parchment. Whether your applicants are submitting resumes touting freshly minted degrees or those awarded in years past, you can’t be too careful when considering their authenticity.

A recent audit of a corporate profile submitted to the Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that an executive with a publicly-traded Jacksonville, Florida, firm had inflated his educational experience. Much to the embarrassment of his employer, this 35-year veteran of the company claimed a B.A. from the University of Georgia when in fact he had only been awarded an A.B.

For positions where a degree or certification is not only warranted but required, it may spell disaster for your firm to find educational discrepancies after the fact.

The due diligence of an educational background check will allow you to confirm secondary school, university or college attended, dates of attendance and degrees or certifications earned and should be a part of every applicant process.

Industries that see a rise in summertime hiring need to take the same level of precaution with their seasonal workers that they do with full-time and permanent staff. Although the staff may not be with you for long, background checks for these workers can be just as important.

Increasing scrutiny is falling upon theme parks, day and overnight camps, childcare centers and other facilities popular with children to make certain that guests are not put in a risky position. One bad or seemingly bad hire could lead to legal as well as public relations problems.