“Criminal history” is an ugly phrase. In 2005, lawmakers passed legislation requiring school districts to perform criminal history checks on those individuals who regularly and continuously work under contract at a school. The intent of this law was to require criminal background checks only on employees working directly with pupils of the school district. However, the language in the law inadvertently included anyone who worked on school property whether or not they were an actual employee of the school district. This requirement created a huge burden for those involved in public school construction by requiring background investigations on all employees working on school property.
MITA has recognized the problem and is currently pursuing changes in the law. Legislation has moved through the House and is now being considered in the Senate to clear up the true intent of the original legislation.
However, even if this legislation does become law and statute no longer requires the construction community to do background checks, individual school districts may still require background checks through contract requirements.
MITA staff has made available a resource that can perform these background checks at a reasonable cost. If your company is in need of this type of service, please contact Pat Brown at the MITA office.
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Pat Brown, Director of Safety and Workforce Development at patrickbrown@mi-ita.com or Mike Nystrom, Vice President, Government and Public Relations at mikenystrom@mi-ita.com or by phone, (517) 347-8336.
