What would you do? New hire may have hidden problem
July 25, 2008 by Jim GiulianoPosted in: Hiring, In this week's e-newsletter, Latest News & Views, What would you do?
Periodically, we ask three HR managers how they’d handle a difficult problem at work. Today’s problem: A new hire could have a dark, hidden past.
The scene
Chuck Rivera began speaking as soon as he entered Stan’s office. “This company has made a big mistake in hiring Woody Sullivan.”
Stan, the HR manager, got over his surprise and said, “Sit down, Chuck, and let’s talk about this.”
Chuck settled into the chair and resumed: “I used to work with him in the accounting department at ABZ Corp. several years ago. That’s why I almost choked when I saw him here today.”
“What do you mean, Chuck? Why?”
Chuck leaned forward and said, “He’s a racist of the worst kind.”
“That’s a serious charge,” Stan replied. “Did he do or say something to you when the two of you were at ABZ?”
“Not directly,” Chuck answered. “He’d make a lot of indirect comments to me and other employees who weren’t white. The guy was always in the HR office getting a lecture about his attitude.”
Clean reference checks
Stan had done the usual thorough reference checks on Woody, and nothing like this had popped up.
“Without some tangible proof that Woody’s a racist, we can’t just assume he is,” Stan said.
“Don’t you believe me?” Chuck asked.
“It’s not about what I believe,” Stan replied. “It’s about what we can prove.”
“OK, Stan,” Chuck said as he got up. “But you’re headed for big trouble with this guy.”
If you were Stan, what would you say or do about Woody?
Nancy Church, HR director, Nashville, TN
What Nancy would do: I’d tell the employee who made the charge to keep quiet about it and that we’re going to have to start Woody with a clean slate, since we have no proof that he’s a problem. I’d also probably monitor Woody closely to watch for any incidents, but I don’t think you can take action until you actually encounter a problem.
Reason: Without proof of the charge, you have to give Woody a fair shot to behave and perform as expected.
Jolene Snyder, HR manager, Ardmore, OK
What Jolene would do: I’ve encountered situations like that at least twice, so I can tell you that our approach was to treat it as if the only information we had was what we learned during the recruiting process - acting as if we’d never heard a complaint. Did it work out? Yes, in both instances the people turned out to be good employees.
Reason: You made the hiring decision based on the best information available at the time, so you stick with that. Plus, even if the problem did exist at one time, the person may have changed.
Alison Donley, general manager, West Grove, PA
What Alison would do: First, I’d ask the complaining employee to keep all of this confidential. Then, I’d consider having a conversation with the new hire, explaining that we have some unsubstantiated charges of misconduct in a previous job, but that we’re going to proceed as if we’d never heard the charges.
Reason: Just telling the new hire that we’ve heard about a problem could be good way to warn him, “We’re going to give you a fair chance, but be careful.” That sends a signal that they better toe the line and refrain from any bad behavior.
Tags: HR, reference checks
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July 28th, 2008 at 1:12 pm
I would tell Chuck that the conversation will stay between us and that I do not want to hear Chuck telling other employees about this or influencing other co-workers feelings or attitudes toward the new hire, Woody. I would absolutely not speak to Woody unless his actions became evident of what Chuck told me. One reason is why cause hostility and drama in the workplace and for another It’s best to see how employee’s really are when they don’t feel under the “radar”. What we need to remember is we do not know the relationship between Chuck and Woody previously nor do we know what Chuck considers as “racist”. Ive dealt with this sort of thing at my last place of employment and it was resolved just by talking and understanding the feud, and in the case i dealt with, culture differences. Eventually after sevearl discussions the accuser realized that he wasnt a victim of racism.
Reason: You should never bring up hearsay from another employee without substantial proof. I feel this causes unnecessary drama and conflict in the workplace. I would definitely be keeping an ear out for remarks amde by this worker but I would never stir the pot.
July 28th, 2008 at 2:07 pm
I would thank Chuck for his candid opinion and ask that he report any incidents to me immediately. I would also ask for his professionalism not to sway judgement of others. I would document my conversation with Chuck and also review our work policies (as with any other new hire) with Stan so that he knows the expectations of the company.
July 30th, 2008 at 9:37 am
While I agree with the idea you’ve got to give the new hire a chance, you also must take reasonable precautions. We do background checks prior to job offer, with written permission from the job applicant, but did not understand the company with whom we’d contracted checked only 3 years back, and did not report on more serious charges which pled down to misdemeanor. As a result, we’d two hires that looked good initially, but had fairly serious issues in their past. When we found out, we took what action we could: we set a floor of 3 employees minimum in our locations at any time, resulting in the male who’d had several sexual assault charges pled down being required to have a least one other employee along with the cashier when closing down, the same rule provided a double check on the woman with the past history of thefts. In instituting a minimum of 2 employees present plus the cashier at all times, and at least two employees checking each other’s count at closing and whenever deposits or large cash payments were made, we felt we’d done as much as legally and ethically possible to protect our other employees, and our business. Neither employee in this example ever gave us reason to question whether or not they were entertaining a return to past behavior, but we didn’t work hard to dissuade either when they chose to move on. By the by, we’ve not had any robbery attempts, while employees are in the building, since we’ve mandated the extra body present, and cash and deposit discrepancies went from occasionally to almost never as well.
July 31st, 2008 at 9:33 am
I would asure Chuck that his comments about the new employee will remain confidential. I would advise Chuck that he is not to share his opinion/comments with other employees as it could leave the company and Chuck open for a law suit. I would not “monitor” the new employee for the “behavior” as that is a discriminatory practice. All policies should have been covered in orientation with the new employee and he should be treated as all new hires are treated.