2 Things To Know About Using Social Media When Screening Potential Employees

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Screening employees is a process used by most companies when they are looking for people to hire, and there are a number of different tools used for this process. One trend that some employers are currently using during the hiring process is social media. As you begin looking for new employees, you may wonder whether you should turn to social media for insight and help. Before you do, here are two things you should know.

You cannot avoid hiring a person based on protected characteristics

Protected characteristics are traits people have that you cannot base your decision on. This includes a person's religion, marital status, race, sexual orientation, and disability. If you choose not to hire a person based on any of these factors, you could face legal issues. The person may decide to sue your company for discrimination, and this could turn into a messy and costly event.

If you screen applicants by viewing their social media posts, you may notice certain features about them that turn you off. The problem with this is that if you do not hire a person because of this, you could be in trouble.

Use the same standards if you do decide to use social media

By knowing the issues that could arise from using social media, you may decide that this is not the best avenue to take, or you might decide to use it anyhow. If you do decide to use social media during the hiring process, you may want to follow these tips:

• Use it after the first interview – If you interview a person and are interested in hiring them, you may want to then view their social media posts. By doing this, you can gain a first impression of the applicant in person before looking at what their personal life is like.
• Look for things that matter – Another tip to keep in mind is to look for things on the sites that matter. For example, you may want to look at a person's grammar skills, and this would be a legitimate factor to consider, especially if the job required writing. You can also look for posts that applicants write that demonstrate their work ethics, attitude, and values.

While approximately 52% of recruiters use social media during the screening process, it is still a trend that has some issues. If you would like to learn more about this or other types of screening tools, contact an employment screening company, like PeopleFacts, in your area.

24 November 2015