Whether you need to ramp up your workforce quickly or are having trouble attracting applicants for open roles, you might be considering loosening your hiring requirements.
According to a 2019 study, more companies are taking this measure in effort to widen their applicant pools and possibly shortening time to hire; however, this solution could have unexpected – and unpleasant – consequences for your business.
Take a look at some of the common ways in which employers loosen their hiring requirements, the possible risks associated with them and what to consider instead.
Reducing educational requirements
Before you relax the rules on your training and education requirements, be aware of the occupational licensing laws that require various levels of training, testing and education for certain occupations in your state.
Failure to meet these regulations is not only a serious violation, but it can also put your employees and customers in harm’s way.
A trusted staffing and recruiting partner can help you make sense of these regulations and mitigate the associated compliance and safety risks by ensuring all workers meet the required training and certification standards first.
Shortening the hiring process
Whether it’s a need to staff up quickly or fear of losing candidates to competitors, you may try cutting corners with your hiring process. If you go this route, however, any measures you take must be compliant with local and state hiring laws.
And if any of these changes entail modifying the way you conduct interviews, that can be dangerous territory as well, if you aren’t asking each candidate the same questions and evaluating them the same way. Consulting with a third-party, certified expert in compliant hiring practice can help you mitigate the risk of non-compliance.
Loosening requirements around experience
Certain positions require high levels of technical expertise, and experience can play a significant role in that. By cutting back on your required years of experience, you could be doing your business a disservice, as it could have a direct impact on the quality of services or products your business provides.
If you’re having trouble recruiting for certain skills, look into partnering with a recruiting firm that specializes in specific industries. They will likely have access to hard-to-find workers with the expertise and unique skills your business requires.
Stopping background checks
If you’re trying to reduce your time to hire, think twice before you cut out background checks. Failure to conduct background screenings on potential employees can lead to bad hiring mistakes, create unsafe conditions for your current employees and customers, and put your business at increased risk of fraud, theft and hacking.
In short, skipping background checks can cost your business in more ways than one.
Stopping drug testing
Much like background checks, drug screening is often a safety issue, especially for certain roles. The recent legalization of marijuana in many states has led to new and varied regulations around employment drug testing, so it is more important than ever that you stay aware of the rules around drug testing.
For help navigating this step and the one above, turn to a quality screening services provider with proven expertise in compliance laws associated with background checks and drug screening. They can thoroughly vet candidates for you while saving you time and giving you confidence in who you bring into your business.
Bottom line
Loosening your hiring requirements can help you bring in more applicants faster, but it won’t necessarily lead to a better quality of hire. Whether you need to staff up quickly, aren’t finding the candidates you need or don’t have the bandwidth to dedicate to recruiting, a good staffing partner can help you find the candidates you need, when you need them.
The right partner will work to understand your workforce needs and then do the heavy lifting to source and screen candidates quickly – all while ensuring you stay compliant.
