Understanding Ohio Employment Background Check Laws

Ohio employment background checks are essential for many employers but failing to understand the restrictions that these laws may impose can lead to significant negative consequences for employers. It can also unfairly diminish the chances of individuals with autism and other disabilities to secure gainful employment. Therefore, understanding these laws and how they impact hiring and retention efforts is crucial.

Whether in Ohio or somewhere else, the issue of background checks for employment applicants is commonly a hot button issue. Employers have a great deal riding on their decisions to make hiring decisions. For example, a manufacturing plant that hires an employee with a criminal record to operate heavy machinery could face civil liability if that employee harms someone while working. For this reason, most employers routinely perform background checks on applicants before hiring anyone to fill their open job opportunities.

The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) identifies autism as a disability that is protected under anti-discrimination laws that apply at both the federal level and in many states. To this end, according to the EEOC’s Guidance on Preemployment Screening in the Age of COVID-19, an employer cannot use disability-related screening tests or Covid-19 virus testing unless it is applied in a non-discriminatory manner as noted above in the context of applicants with disabilities.

In the relevant provisions of Ohio law, background checks fall into the category of “consumer reports.” The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and its Ohio counterpart contain many similarities and require employers in Ohio to carefully follow the law when conducting background checks. Ohio law also has specific requirements that companies are expected to follow when performing background checks on applicants, and doing so without violating the law is not optional. The basic laws governing pre-employment screening include:

  1. Providing pre-notice to applicants that informs them they will be subject to credit history, criminal background, and driving history checks.
  2. Getting the applicant’s written consent to run the background check.
  3. If drug testing is to be performed, it must be done in accordance with Revised Code 3792.03, which requires drug testing programs to meet certain standards.
  4. Giving full disclosure of the contents of the background check.
  5. Allowing applicants to review the results and correct any inaccuracies in their credit history or criminal background report.
  6. Not using the background checks to make decisions regarding credit (i.e., denying credit cards, loans, etc.)
  7. Not using the background checks to discriminate against people because of their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Individuals with autism often have difficulty securing employment. It is not uncommon for employers to unintentionally overlook some of the challenges that people with autism experience. For example, the open-ended and complex nature of interviews can cause individuals with autism to struggle with communication. Interpreting body language can be equally difficult. In one of the most recent studies of hiring practices, only 34 percent of applicants with autism who interviewed were offered a job. By comparison, 90 percent of applicants who did not disclose a disability were offered jobs after interviewing. Employers should avoid focusing on a lack of on-the-job experience, which could be required due to challenges with communication and inflexible classroom instruction methods. Instead, companies should focus on the communicative ability, reliability, flexibility, and quality of work that an individual with autism consistently brings to the workplace.

The good news is that understanding and subsequently complying with comprehensive ohio employment background check laws can help companies to avoid costly legal action. Additionally, making an effort to promote inclusivity for disabled individuals can increase profitability. According to the most recent statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 36.2 percent of disabled workers are employed, compared to 75.7 percent for able-bodied workers. The difference has been attributed to the following factors:

  • Improved employee morale
  • Stronger expectations from all employees
  • Enhanced creativity and problem-solving abilities

Companies that have adopted nondiscriminatory policies show improved workplace diversity and enhanced productivity. It has further been found that enterprises with the largest percentage of staff with a disability outperformed those without disabled members by 28 percent in terms of the quality of their products. Disabled workers increase productivity and profitability. If you are a hiring manager and you have not re-evaluated your background policy in light of these facts, it is time to re-consider whether focusing on more traditional concerns such as criminal history is the right way to go.