Whilst this may sound like a fantastic idea for employers who, in an increasingly cautious world of bland, insipid and non-committal references, have little by way of opportunity to fully "check out" an employee before they take them on, there does need to be a practical balance drawn when considering the potential benefits of such a scheme.
Some benefits cited for businesses include cost and time savings through reduced losses (from dishonest staff) and more efficient recruitment process respectively. Also it is suggested that the Register will act as a deterrent for existing staff so they will not be dishonest, and help improve the perceived quality of the working environment.
However, there are naturally some concerns about the use of the Register. Companies could use this database to 'blacklist' workers they believe are leaving the company for a competitor in order to stop them being employed by such competitor. The worker may not even know about the allegation or the concern for example, they could be one of ten people in a warehouse where something goes missing and that may be enough for him/her to then get put on the database and become almost unemployable.
People may effectively become shut out of the job market by a former employer who falsely accuses them of misconduct or sacks them because they bear a grudge. Individuals would be treated as criminals even though the police had never been contacted, and they may never have been notified even of suspicions by their former employer.
Whilst if the employee can prove that what is on the database about them is incorrect the information can be changed, in practice, it is very unlikely that they will be able to prove this because it will be their word against the business.
This database system may certainly be helpful to a business as it may get lucky and not employ someone who could be a problem for it, but if someone gets put on there unfairly then it could miss out on some really talented people who could potentially help it grow and benefit for the future.
Naturally businesses are going to be keen on this Register, but there is still going to be much to be said for rigorous recruitment processes and sensible judgements!