Can You Sign Background Checks If You Are Under 18

How To Screen Underage Employees

August 9, 2018

Validity Team

Estimated Read Time: 6 Minutes

Interns-and-Underage-Employees_website

Generally speaking, background-screenings for minors does autumn nether the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) just similar it would for any other applicant or employee who'south an developed. The departure that employers take to empathize is that minors are mostly not able to legally provide consent for a groundwork check

If you're an employer that wants to bear pre-employment screening and background checks on minors, while ensuring you're legally protected, it may be wise to acquire consent from the bidder'south parents or legal guardian

A common issue when conducting background checks on minors is the accessibility of information. A minor with a criminal tape, or adults with records from when they were minors, are difficult to report on. They don't make information technology piece of cake for you, and this is because many of the institutions that hold the records will non release them to public inquiry.

Whenever y'all're at your local grocery store (Hy-Vee is my personal become to), do y'all ever get amazed with how young the cashier or the bagger looks? I swear, it sometimes looks like they're 10 years old, no kidding! So my next thought is always, "what was their screening process like? Did they have to go through a background bank check?" Alright, it'due south probably pretty weird that one of my offset thoughts was whether or not the young workers had gone through a groundwork check, but give me a intermission, I piece of work for a background screening company. If y'all're like me and you're as well curious to know what the screening/groundwork check process was like for the young workers, then y'all're in luck. I'm about to go over all of that. So lets practise it!

Expect! You Can Screen Minors?

It'll probably be best if we clear this up, now. Aye, you tin can screen minors. But the process will exist dissimilar as opposed to screening adults.

Generally speaking, groundwork screenings for minors does fall under the Fair Credit Reporting Deed (FCRA) just like it would for whatsoever other applicant or employee who'south an adult. The difference that employers must empathize is that minors are generally not able to legally provide consent for a background check. Applicants under the age of 18 (in some states fifty-fifty younger) are unable to enter legally binding agreements. It's not expected for minors to have the maturity necessary to fully understand the terms and obligations of a legal understanding or groundwork cheque. And then even though an employer may crave a minor to sign a disclosure and authorization for a pre-employment screening, it may actually not be binding in the event of litigation. Which means the employer is left unprotected.

So what do y'all practice? You telephone call their parents!

Parental Consent Volition Be Needed

Parents or legal guardians have the legal authority over minors. That means they have the ability to give consent to the screening and the applicant undergoing the groundwork bank check. This volition safeguard you, the company, from any potential legal risk. If yous're an employer that wants to conduct pre-employment screening and background checks on minors, while ensuring yous're legally protected, be sure you're acquiring consent from the applicant'southward parents or legal guardian.

Are At that place Whatever Risks?

Other than the common compliance considerations when screening applicants and employees there aren't any unique risks to performing background screenings on minors-as long as you lot accept that parental/ legal guardian consent. To elaborate more on what was said before, minors are considered to lack the legal power or "capacity" to contract when it comes to legally binding agreements. Equally a legal matter, they are presumed to not know what they are doing.

Under mutual law, if a small-scale signed a contract like-minded to a background bank check or pre-employment screening the contract is voidable. When a pocket-sized enters a contract with another party, without consent from a parent or legal guardian, the minor could disaffirm the contract. Meaning that the modest could assert a defense force of infancy, and argue that they lacked the capacity to enter into the understanding, thus, they cannot be forced to become through with a contract that takes reward of their lack of knowledge.

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Therefore, a minor who signs a contract tin either honor the bargain or void the contract. See why it's so important to go that parental consent? The minor could sign a disclosure and dominance for pre-employment screenings and it may not even exist binding.

Just…What If They Do Have A Record (Accessibility)?

A common consequence when conducting background checks on minors is the accessibility of information. A minor with a criminal tape, or adults with records from when they were minors, are difficult to report on. They don't make information technology easy for you, and it's because many of the institutions that concord the records volition non release them to public research.

In general, the public does not take access to juvenile records. When conducting groundwork checks, you might be able to see that in that location is a case in the arrangement, but there won't be very many details on the case. Sometimes the case won't even be reported, and guess what? The same situation applies to sex offender registries.

A pocket-sized could be on a state sex offender registry, and that information might just be accessible to regime agencies. In other cases, the minor may not even be required to register to the sex offender registry until they're adults. Like I said before, they don't brand information technology easy for you. The laws are setup to protect minors and their information.

Making Sure Information technology's In Your Policy

Hopefully I haven't scared you away from wanting to conduct background checks on minors. It'southward still very much possible to do, and truly not that bad-equally long as you're making certain you're protected. And so before you abandon the idea completely, consider risk management. If take a chance management is a large reason to why yous want to run background checks, stick with the thought, but stay legally protected and consistent!

Consistency is probably the about important thing to running background checks. That goes for any age. If you decide to kickoff conducting background checks on minors you must behave them on all applicants that are minors or on none. Plain and unproblematic. And then be sure to update your policy and so that it will reflect that. Running background checks on minors tin can be hard, just as long as you're getting consent from a parent or legal guardian and ensuring that you're policy is updated…it doesn't accept to exist tough at all.

Closing Thoughts

We'd love to know what you lot call up, or answer any questions you may have. Delight go out a comment below to tell usa your thoughts. To learn more, or if y'all accept any questions, delight email me at rsanders@validityscreening.com. For more great blogs and content delight subscribe to our blogs hither.