Most HR departments and recruiters are familiar with the terms negligent hiring or negligence in employment. They are part of the reason why companies utilize lengthy background checks and interviews as part of their hiring process. Understanding what negligent hiring constitutes and how it can negatively affect your business is key to its prevention.
Negligent hiring is the act of hiring, supervising, or retaining an employee or contingent worker who if you know they may pose a risk. If these employees subsequently perform negligent or reckless acts which may harm others, the employer can be held accountable. In this sense, the employee definition may cover full-time employees and contingent workers such as temporary workers, independent contractors, and consultants.
A severe example of negligent hiring would be employing and/or retaining an individual with a known criminal history, who ends up assaulting a customer. Negligent hiring can also apply to general employee negligence, such as knowingly hiring an underqualified applicant to perform a dangerous or high-risk job, which may put other workers in danger.
In many US states and Canadian provinces, negligent hiring places the liability directly on the employer. As an example, California recognizes that employers can be held liable for the actions of unfit employees under their supervision if they were to cause harm. According to previous cases, for an employer to be legally considered liable, the individual must have known or reasonably should have known that the employee was incompetent or unfit to fulfill the duties of their position. This negligence in hiring must have then contributed to the harming another individual by the incompetent party.
Avoiding the legal liability of negligent hiring requires due diligence. Here are four ways to avoid introducing risk into your organization:
These mitigation strategies can only protect the liability of an employer to a certain extent. Third party workforce specialists such as HCMWorks can provide much needed expertise to help minimize employer risk. We understand the legal aspects of hiring across North America and establishes appropriate workforce management processes to meet them. HCMWorks is a leading provider of contingent workforce solutions, including risk mitigation, talent acquisition, Managed Service Provider programs, Vendor Management System VMS advisory, and more. To learn more about how HCMWorks can minimize your hiring risk, talk to one of our experts.