FAQ - General Information

To protect the campus community and its assets, the University needs to ensure that individuals assigned to certain campus positions (cash handlers, police officers, child care workers, and data managers with access to personal information, to name a few) have no history of criminal behavior relevant to their employment. Although this is no guarantee against criminal acts, it does reduce the likelihood of crime, and may reduce the campus' liability in the event a crime occurs. It also helps protect hiring departments from the possibility of lawsuits, which exact a heavy cost in time and morale, and from the cost of embezzlement (the University's Employee Dishonesty Insurance Policy has a deductible of $1 million, meaning anything less than that is paid by the department). You are invited to read the full text of the policy.
 

The policy provides guidance on the criteria for determining when positions are sensitive and require criminal background checks. It articulates the responsibilities of the department and other campus units, describes the process for criminal background checks, including the notification process, and provides for the confidentiality of information gathered and the protection of privacy of individuals undergoing criminal background checks.
 

No. The background checks authorized by this policy are for criminal convictions only. However, some positions may require additional background checks, including checking into a person's credit rating.

Current employees do not have to undergo criminal background checks unless a transfer, promotion, reclassification, or change in their job duties moves their position into a sensitive category, as defined by the new criteria.

Criminal background checks are required for any personnel actions involving sensitive positions, including new hires, transfers, promotions, reclassifications, or changes in job duties that move a position into a "sensitive" category. This includes career, limited, contract, per diem, student, and volunteer positions.

Where policies and contractual provisions related to background checks for specific personnel programs currently exist, it is intended that the provisions of this policy be applied in conjunction with those provisions. Employees in the Clerical unit will remain covered by the relevant contractual provisions and the previous policy pertaining to background checks while collective bargaining obligations are completed. See Unions, Bargaining Agreements, and Labor Relations for more information.

The hiring department, in consultation with the Office of Human Resources, will determine which positions should be designated as "sensitive," based on the duties and responsibilities of each position.