Does your cleaning company conduct background checks on their employees?

In New York City, commercial and office building owners and property managers often times use cleaning services that take care of business after normal working hours.  While surveillance cameras provide a certain level of security when nobody else is around, there are other steps a business can take to make sure they are not the victim of a dishonest cleaning service employee.

One of the best ways to do this is to ask a prospective cleaning company if the conduct background checks on their employees before they are hired.  While a negative event in a person’s past may not be a disqualifying event, it can give an employer a heads-up in case problems do arise.  Unfortunately, recent studies show that almost a third of all businesses do not conduct criminal background checks before they hire someone, leaving themselves open to hiring a person who may be untrustworthy and who will probably be left alone onsite if they are hired.

There are many types of background checks that a cleaning company can conduct, and as a customer, it’s probably a good idea to discuss what checks a service undertakes with their employees so you can enter into an agreement with a high level of trust from the start.

The most common form of due diligence is a basic background check.  This will tell an employer if there have been any illegal activities in a person’s past, as well as verifying education and employment history and a reference verification.  Any red flags at this level should be cause for concern.

Many employers also conduct targeted criminal background checks as well, going back at least 10 years to see if there have been any arrests or convictions.  A criminal background check will reveal issues on a state and federal level, and depending on the level of detail, may also reveal arrests and the local and county level as well.

Other types of background checks may include credit checks, professional license confirmation, a drug screening and workers’ compensation claims history.  It is best to reveal all of these things up front before making a final decision about whether or not to allow a cleaning service person into your workplace before or after normal working hours.

Blue Chip Building Maintenance has been providing commercial cleaning services in the New York City metro area for 25 years.