If there’s one thing everyone agrees on, it’s that those put in charge of looking after children must be held to a higher standard and undergo thorough background checks. However, at what point do background checks start to do more harm than good? Nebraska is facing this issue now, as a new state law requiring child care employees to undergo an additional federal background check is beginning to create problems for daycare providers.
To clarify, the problem isn’t the background check—it’s the long waiting period that can take up to a month that is making potential employees reconsider the job. The new process has many noting the strict guidelines as redundant and counterproductive. The applicants must submit the background check application, pay a $45 fine to the Nebraska State Patrol, and get their fingerprints taken. On top of that, they must undergo the check once every five years once employed. This is more than enough to sway people towards a different job path with a less invasive hiring process.
Again, we do not argue that background checks for those in charge of children are important. But whether they are properly handled is the question at hand. Many potential employees can’t afford the fees, and can’t afford to wait a month to maybe get the job. Some daycares are paying the fee for their employees and potential employees for now, but budgetary problems are sure to arise. It is said that the new background checks allow the state to continue using federal funds to help strengthen Nebraska’s efforts to ensure the safety of children. Some daycares already do multiple background checks, so the federally mandated checks bring nothing new to the table—except a fee. Many daycare workers are more concerned about a potential criminal who has a clean record than missing something on a background check.
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