How Are Janitors Background-Checked for Secure Facilities?

Layers of a janitor background check for a secure facility

Each layer answers a different question: is this person who they say they are, are they allowed to work, is there a relevant record, and has the site's own authority cleared them. Buyers can require any combination, but the employer must run each check through the channel the law allows.

California rules that govern how screening is done

The Fair Chance Act, Government Code section 12952, bars employers with five or more employees from asking about conviction history before a conditional offer. If a record turns up, the employer must make an individualized assessment of the offense, the time passed and the job, send a preliminary notice, and give the applicant at least five business days to respond before a final decision. The City of Los Angeles and unincorporated Los Angeles County add their own fair chance ordinances.

Reporting limits apply too. California's Investigative Consumer Reporting Agencies Act generally bars screening companies from reporting convictions more than seven years old, and Labor Code section 432.7 restricts using arrests that did not lead to conviction. Federal law requires a written disclosure and the applicant's authorization before any report is ordered.

Checks the site itself can require

Many secure facilities add their own screening on top of the employer's. Federal buildings require an agency investigation before issuing a PIV credential. School districts must have contractors' employees who may contact pupils fingerprinted through the California Department of Justice. Workers who need unescorted access to secure areas of regulated port facilities need a Transportation Worker Identification Credential, and airport badges for secure areas involve a fingerprint-based criminal history check.

Cannabis testing has a specific exception. Government Code section 12954 limits penalizing workers for off-duty cannabis use, but it does not apply to positions that require a federal background investigation or security clearance.

Re-screening and the gaps between checks

A check is a snapshot, so secure sites set rules for what happens afterward. Common requirements include re-running checks at a fixed interval or at contract renewal, renewing site credentials before they lapse, and suspending a badge while a new check is pending. The gap most often missed is coverage: substitute and backup cleaners must be screened to the same standard before they are needed, or a sick call turns into an unscreened person in a secure area. Departures matter as much as arrivals: when someone leaves the contract, their badge, keys and codes should be shut off the same day.

Questions to ask a cleaning vendor about screening

Ask for answers in writing, and make the important ones contract terms rather than sales promises. A vendor that screens properly can describe its process in detail, name the screening company it uses, and explain how it handles a record that turns up after a conditional offer.

• Which checks are run on every hire, and through which screening company?
• How are California fair chance and reporting rules followed?
• Are backup and substitute staff screened to the same level?
• How often are checks repeated, and what triggers an early re-check?
• Can the vendor support site-required checks such as fingerprinting or agency investigations?
• How quickly are access credentials deactivated when someone leaves?

Screening and assignment at EBS

EBS team members are vetted and background-checked, then trained and uniformed before they are assigned to a facility. EBS has worked in high-security and access-controlled environments, including government and secure-facility operations, where confidentiality and accountability are part of the job. Any screening your site adds is set out at the walkthrough, and backup staffing is planned around the same requirements.