BEST Background Checks for Church Volunteers and Employees
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If you are a leader of a church or ministry, then this blog post about the importance of background checks for church volunteers and employees is for you!
It answers the following questions:
Who does background checks for church volunteers and employees?
Why should churches perform background checks?
How far back do church background checks go?
What does a church background check show?
When should a church perform a background check?
How often should churches perform background checks?
What are examples of church background check policies?
Where can you get church background checks?
Who does background checks for church volunteers and employees?
Protect My Ministry performs background checks for church volunteers and employees. By using the links in this post, Protect My Ministry will offer you generous discounts!
Why should churches perform background checks?
The number one goal of background checks for church volunteers and employees is prevention!
Most importantly, church background checks help prevent harm to the children. Churches must not allow registered sex offenders to work with its children (e.g., nursery, children’s church, youth groups) . Churches should run a background check for every volunteer and employee, especially those applying to work with the children. It is important to make sure your background checks include a search of all 50 states’ sex offender registries! Each volunteer and employee should also be required to successfully complete a Child Safety training. All bundles at Protect My Ministry include a Child Safety training. This online training can help workers recognize child abuse and enlighten them about proper ways to interact with children. When parents know staff and volunteers have completed a background check and Child Safety training it fosters trust and confidence amongst the parents.
Church background checks help protect the church’s finances. For example, if someone has a criminal history involving theft, you may not choose them to collect the tithes and offering or be the Church Treasurer. Churches should run a background check for every volunteer and employee, including those applying to work with its finances.
Church background checks reduce the chance of litigation and insurance claims. As a result of child sex abuse claims, The Archdiocese of New York and Chubb Insurance were named in over 1,500 Child Victims Act lawsuits. If each case settles for $1 million or more, the religious organization can be be forced into bankruptcy. Another example of reducing the chance of litigation and insurance claims is related to motor vehicles. Imagine a scenario where you run someone’s Motor Vehicle report and they have a history of poor driving. You may not want this person to drive congregants to a retreat in the church van. This may mitigate the risk of an accident, and any resulting insurance claims, and/or lawsuits (e.g., personal injury and property damage). Preventing litigation and insurance claims also helps to protect the church’s finances.
Church background checks may help your church to be compliant with requirements of insurance companies. Some insurance companies require employees or volunteers working with minors to undergo a national criminal background check.
Church background checks also help protect the church’s reputation. If there is an incident at a church, then the bad news could tarnish that church’s reputation. It could also make its leadership look bad. Negative reputations can make a church less desirable in the community, have an adverse effect on its attendance and finances, and ultimately inhibit people from coming to Christ.
As you can see, screening helps prevent individuals with a history of abuse or inappropriate behavior from gaining access to children and positions of authority in the church. Church background checks for church volunteers and employees are more of an investment than an expense!
Church background checks help:
prevent harm to the children,
protect the church’s finances,
reduce the chance of litigation and insurance claims,
help churches to comply with insurance companies’ requirements, and
protect the reputations of the church and its leadership.
How far back do church background checks go, and what does a church background check show?
To determine how far back a church background check will go, and what it will show, you have to look at what services are included in the background checks your church orders. For example, the “Plus Package” at Protect My Ministry checks one (1) county or state. Whereas the “7 Year Unlimited Package” at Protect My Ministry checks unlimited counties and states based upon the last seven (7) years of address history reported via Social Security Number.
When should a church perform a background check?
Church background checks should be performed whenever someone applies for employment at the church or to volunteer for any ministry (e.g., Worship team, Media team, Security Ministry, Ushers, Children’s Church, Youth, etc.). They should also be performed periodically thereafter.
How often should churches perform background checks?
Churches should perform background checks routinely (e.g., every 6 months, year, or 2 years) to make sure nothing has happened since the last background check was performed. Once leadership decides when background checks will be performed, and which services should be ordered (e.g., 7 Year Unlimited Package and Motor Vehicle Search), leadership can create background check related policies.
What are examples of church background check policies?
Examples of church background checks policies include:
Order a “7 Year Unlimited Package” from Protect My Ministry for every applicant for employment or volunteering.
Set up a “Rescreen Notification” and have the employee or volunteer’s background check run every 6 months thereafter.
In addition to the above, order a “Motor Vehicle Search” for anyone seeking permission to drive a church vehicle.
Where can you get church background checks?
I recommend Protect My Ministry for background checks for church volunteers and employees. My church’s insurance company does too!
Protect My Ministry (PMM) serves more than 35K faith-based organizations and has a great reputation.
PMM is able to check all 50 states’ sex offender registries!
All bundles include a Child Safety training.
PMM makes it easy to run legally compliant background checks.
All you need is a name and email address and PMM will send the consent form directly to the applicant.
The applicant fills in the required information (e.g., name, address, date of birth, Social Security Number). This decreases the chance of a clerical error and saves you time. Additionally, you do not have to worry about securely storing this sensitive information, which is also a form of risk management.
Customers can speak with a live representative for help.
A physical team (not electronic) checks the records and re-verification to ensure the data is accurate.
PMM’s sales team will help you order the best background check-related services for your needs!
If you want to prevent harm to the children, protect the church’s finances, reduce the chance of litigation and insurance claims, and protect the reputation of the church and its leadership then complete this short form! Protect My Ministry will then contact you and provide you with more information. When you use the links in this post, PMM will offer you generous discounts!
If you know a leader of a church or ministry that would benefit from this information, then please share this post with them!
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About the Author: Lori Corini is an attorney admitted to practice law in the state of New York, an NRA Pistol Instructor and Range Safety Officer, a NYS licensed armed guard, and Director of Safety and Security and a Board Member at her Church.