Daycare Background Checks: What's in Them and Why?

When a parent chooses a daycare, they are picking people to protect their child’s safety and well-being for hours at a time. They must pay close attention to the facility’s licensing, insurance, reputation, and background check policies. So, what do daycare background checks entail?

Federal and State Requirements for Daycare Background Checks

The federal Child Care and Development Block Grant Act (The CCDF Law) requires all registered childcare facilities to run background checks on their staff every five years. Additionally, each State has its own childcare background check requirements to protect children within its jurisdiction.

Here’s what’s always included in a background check for childcare:

• FBI fingerprint background checks
• Sex offender registry checks—both of the National Crime Information Center’s National Sex Offender Registry and state registries
• State-based child abuse and neglect registry checks
• State-based criminal history checks
  

Daycares must check offender registries and court records for each state where the employee has lived for the past five years. Out-of-state background checks help childcare facilities catch red flags that might not have appeared otherwise.

Some in-home and family childcare facilities are regulated; others are not. Unregulated in-home daycares are typically only allowed to care for a few children (12 or less) at a time. These daycares are not required to meet the same standards as regulated daycares. Parents should look for daycares that have met standard daycare background checks and inspection requirements.

Other Types of Background Checks Daycares Do

Some daycares conduct additional background screening steps that go beyond the federal requirements. These add another layer of thoroughness to the background check process to further protect children’s safety.

• County criminal record checks: often contain criminal history data that has not yet made it to state records.
• Alias checks: find all the names associated with a candidate’s social security number to widen the scope for criminal background checks.
• Drug testing: ensure people with unsupervised access to children are not ever under the influence of drugs or in possession of dangerous substances that threaten children’s safety.
• Reference checks: conversations with previous employers can give the hiring facility a greater understanding of a candidate’s character and ability to work with children.

What Disqualifies You From Working in a Daycare? Background Check Red Flags

Unsatisfactory background check results can impact an employer’s hiring decisions, including retracting an employment offer. Here are some red flags a childcare background check looks for that will disqualify you from working at a childcare facility:

• Refusing a background check
• Submitting false information on a background check
• If your name appears on a registered sex offenders list
• A history of violence towards children
• Violent misdemeanor convictions
• Felony convictions for murder, child abuse or neglect, kidnapping, assault, arson, or crimes against children (within the last five years).
• Domestic abuse convictions
• Sexual assault convictions
• Drug-related convictions

The above-mentioned red flags come from the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act for CCDF-registered facilities. Other daycare centers, however, may have an extended list of employment disqualifiers, depending on their individual child safety policies.

Drug-Related Convictions and Daycare Background Checks

The CCDF law does allow some flexibility for candidates with recent drug-related felonies on their criminal records. Depending on your state, these convictions may not automatically disqualify you from working in childcare. Employers may consider the extenuating circumstances leading up to a conviction under the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s guidelines.

A candidate with a history of drug abuse may be considered for a childcare role so long as they no longer pose any safety threats to the children. This clause supports the objectives of the Fair Chance Act. However, it is still applicable in all states.

Best Background Check Practices for Daycare Centers

Hiring for childcare roles is often more complex than hiring within other industries. You must ensure your facility protects the safety of its children by thorough pre-employment vetting. Understanding the applicable laws in your state and working with a trusted background check provider can streamline the process.

If you own or operate a daycare center and want to learn more about our reliable background check service, please explore our products page or contact our US-based customer service team.