When an employee is arrested outside of work hours, it's never welcome news, but there are some key do's and don'ts for HR professionals to keep in mind. It's not simple to find a balance between protecting the rights of a worker who's been arrested and protecting your business and the rest of your employees.
Employers and HR professionals need to understand how federal and state laws treat the difference between arrests and convictions. In some cases, using an individual's arrest record in making employment decisions could violate the federal Civil Rights Act of 1964.
After an arrest, the employer should not assume the employee committed the crime. Instead, the employer should give the person a chance to explain the circumstances. Then the employer can conduct an internal investigation and determine whether the person's explanation is reliable. An internal investigation could uncover evidence of illegal or inappropriate conduct unrelated to the arrest.
"The initial information that an employer receives is often inaccurate, exaggerated or incomplete," said Ann Wicks, a lawyer with Withers Bergman in San Francisco. "Gathering information is usually the first step, but an employer needs to be very deliberate in who gathers the information, who has access to that information and what they do in response to the information. Jumping to conclusions, spreading gossip and overreacting can be very costly."
Depending on the evidence, the internal investigator might recommend unpaid...
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