Webinar recap: San Diego SHRM provides an update on State employment laws, and new legislation and offers tips and strategies for regulatory compliance.  On Wednesday, October 14, SmartSearch co-sponsored a virtual event hosted by the San Diego chapter of the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) featuring its annual Employment Law Update. The program kicked...Read More

You may have the most beautifully designed, robust, well written and lightning-fast website in your market. It may perform very well on mobile, drive conversions and generate a ton of orders and qualified applications for your staffing agency. But is your website ADA-compliant? If not, you could be: alienating job seekers and other potential site...Read More

All companies want to make a good hire, so using a resource such as a background screening service is pretty commonplace, but this comes with preparation and planning. One item that is a must for any employer is in knowing the background screening service they are using will keep them within compliance and mitigate the...Read More

On February 19, I helped organize a learning event with the SHRM Educational Foundation, Hawaii Island District, to present an informative program and interactive discussion on best practices in Diversity & Inclusion, emphasizing hiring people with disabilities. The event occurred at the W.M. Keck Observatory in its Jerry Nelson Conference Center, in Kamuela. Margarete Hester,...Read More

When I think about the words “inclusion” and “tolerance,” I envision two words that are polar opposites of each other. In today’s workforce, diversity and inclusion mean seeking, accepting and wanting people from different walks of life. Tolerance does not denote acceptance. It’s a hostile attitude of being faced with something you must accept but...Read More

Over the past few years, litigation has tripled in employment background screening, due to increased regulations and scrutiny of the background screening process by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and other federal/state and industry-specific auditing agencies.  Recently, employee/candidates have filed a significant number of class-action lawsuits, causing companies to pay...Read More

On May 25, 2018, a new privacy law called the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) took effect in the European Union (EU). GDPR expands the privacy rights of EU individuals and places new obligations on all organizations that market, track, or handle EU citizens’ personal data. As we all know, there are legal requirements to...Read More

With modern technology linking us humans closer together, the world seems to be shrinking. This affects employers a variety of ways. The good news is they have gained access to a larger pool of job candidates since many positions are no longer bound by geography. However, with more people living abroad to work or study,...Read More

There are myriad changes occurring with workplace policies. One of which is if, when, why and how companies conduct drug testing at the time of onboarding new talent. The shortage of talent is one of the factors that is leading employers to rethink if drug testing is a necessity, as well as how it may...Read More

Background screening has become almost universally adopted, and according to the Society of Human Resources Managers (SHRM), more than nine out of 10 companies screen candidates. This rising trend exists for good reason. Failing to make safe hiring decisions not only puts people at risk but also carries heavy financial penalties. According to the Human...Read More