Virtual Job Recruiting During COVID-19

The recent COVID-19 outbreak has caused tumultuous rumblings throughout the business world—putting an undue amount of stress on organizations that need to continue to operate. This has put businesses of all kinds in a very difficult spot when it comes to job recruitment, which typically involves an individual coming into the office for a formal face-to-face interview at some point during the hiring process. With many places urging varying degrees of shelter-in-place orders, the standard hiring process is currently not an available option.

In order to succeed, many businesses must adapt their hiring practices and rely more heavily on virtual job recruitment opportunities. The tips below will help your organization develop a strong virtual hiring process during these trying times.

Virtual Interviewing Software is a Necessity

We all want to minimize our potential exposure to help slow the spread of COVID-19. Luckily, with the aid of modern technology and video interviewing software, it’s never been easier to conduct interviews from a responsible distance. The use of virtual interviewing software has been on the rise for some time now, and more and more industries are moving toward incorporating video interviewing during initial screenings. If you had considered previously adapting virtual interviewing software into your hiring process, now is the time to make it happen. Relying on such software can increase your staff’s productivity, allows for an unprecedented amount of screening flexibility, and can allow for immediate, hands-on training. Relying on such a process can save you time, money, and manpower.

How to Prepare for Virtual Job Recruitment

Remember that just because the hiring process is now occurring digitally, proper preparation is still necessary. Ideally, both parties are ready to go at the time of the scheduling virtual interview. You’ll want to ensure that your hardware is operating properly, that your software is up and running, that you have your interviewing resources readily available, and that you have selected a quiet, professional location to conduct your interview in.

PSI Background Screening is Available to Assist You

We hope that these tips will help you adapt your hiring practices to our current epidemic. The most important thing to remember with virtual hiring is that you do not want to sacrifice the quality of your recruitment process—it should look very similar to your previous recruitment process, except that it now relies almost entirely on video interviews and digital communication. Properly screening prospective employees should not be something that you let slide—it’s never been more important.

We Offer Remote Access for Initiating Background Investigations

Your employee never has to leave the comfort and safety of their home to submit the required information and consents for background investigations. You can send them an email invitation through PSI’s proprietary applicant e-Vite process to submit the request for the background check. They click the link in the e-Vite, which directs them to our secure online system, and they can log in, complete their information and submit their request. If your employees typically pay for their own background check, they can also submit payment via credit card for us to process their request or we can bill your organization directly. Once submitted, we return most requests in three business days or less. The results are then available to you directly in PSI’s secure online system which will function as an electronic filing cabinet for your requests.

At PSI Background Screening, we are taking the necessary steps to keep ourselves safe, while still committing ourselves to support businesses with their background screening needs.

Additional Resources and Information Regarding the Effect of COVID-19 on the Screening Process

Court Closures:

PSI can process criminal and civil history searches in most jurisdictions across the United States. However, in some areas, court closures are preventing our ability to access records and causing delays in the completion of background investigations. For more information on court closures, please visit the link published below by our industry association, the Professional Background Screening Association (PBSA):

https://thepbsa.org/covid-19-resources/covid-19-impact-on-public-records/

Employment and Education Verifications:

PSI is continuing to process employment and education verification checks for clients requesting these services. We are experiencing some delays in completion of employment verifications, as many employers are closed or working from home where they do not have access to employee records. Many schools, universities, and colleges also remain closed currently, limiting our ability to complete education verifications.  We will continue to follow up on any verification that is pending due to COVID-19 closures. Unless requested, we will not return incomplete verification requests, so that we can ensure that you receive the verification information you need for hiring purposes.

Please be aware that the likelihood of falsified documentation, particularly for education, may be higher at this time. We recommend keeping this in mind when making decisions regarding how to proceed with hiring if an institution is not available for direct verification. If you accept documentation in order to extend an initial job offer, you should consider completing the verification as soon as it is possible, in order to confirm the legitimacy of the documents provided.

If you have questions regarding a specific verification or applicant, please reach out to our team at (706) 235-7574.

E-Verify and Form I-9 Compliance:

Given the need for social distancing, the Department of Homeland Security and the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement department have published guidance on allowed flexibilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. More information can be found by visiting this link:

https://www.ice.gov/news/releases/dhs-announces-flexibility-requirements-related-form-i-9-compliance

Drug Testing:

We are currently able to proceed with drug testing in most jurisdictions across the United States through Patient Service Centers with Quest Diagnostic and LabCorp. For information regarding closures, and updated statements from the laboratories visit:

https://www.labcorp.com/coronavirus-disease-covid-19

https://www.questdiagnostics.com/our-company/covid-19

DOT Regulated Drug Testing

The Department of Transportation (DOT) has published guidelines for regulated drug testing compliance during the COVID-19 Pandemic. For more information, visit the below link:

https://www.transportation.gov/odapc/compliance-with-dot-drug-and-alcohol-testing-regulations