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Virginia childcare providers can’t hire staff due to background check delays: 'When is it going to be fixed?'

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RICHMOND, Va. — Several Central Virginia childcare directors and owners told CBS 6 they have been waiting weeks or months for the Virginia Department of Social Services (DSS) to process job candidates' fingerprint background checks, which is hindering the hiring of much-needed staff.

At Heaven Sent Childcare in Henrico’s East End and Jackson Ward, CEO and Director Cynthia Williams-Bey said she’s had trouble hiring new teachers for her pre-K program and two-year-old classroom, as well as drivers to pick up kids from school for aftercare.

“It has been a rollercoaster where I have great candidates that want to work, they reach out and walk in, they want to work, but I lose them in the process because it has taken such a long time for them to get their fingerprints back,” Williams-Bey said.

She’s not alone.

CBS 6’s Melissa Hipolit talked to a number of daycare directors and owners throughout the region who said DSS has not gotten back to them for weeks or months with the results of fingerprint background checks.

State law requires childcare providers to complete a fingerprint-based background check.

“It means low morale because my team that I have here, I have a great excellent team, but there is only so much that your team can take, and when you’re short-staffed or you have the staff you need but you don’t have the overflow when someone gets sick, that leaves more strain on additional staff,” Williams-Bey said.

She showed us an email she sent to DSS on Jan. 9 requesting an update on a candidate’s fingerprint background check which was performed on Nov. 21, 2024.

“It’s just been no response from social services at all. I haven’t gotten any type of response,” Williams-Bey said.

Williams-Bey said DSS did recently start using a new web portal for childcare providers, and she is wondering if that is contributing to the issue.

Another area daycare provider sent us an automatic reply email they just received from DSS Monday afternoon that states for applicants fingerprinted before Jan. 1, determinations will be disseminated by Jan. 27. And, for those fingerprinted between Jan. 1 and Jan. 15, determinations will be disseminated by Jan. 31.

Williams-Bey said she has not received that automatic reply, but she hopes it is accurate.

“These are people’s children, so we want the staff to be jolly, to be happy, to be excited, and it is really hard to do that when you’re overwhelmed with carrying a responsibility that two staff members should. It can be a lot,” Williams-Bey said. “When is it going to be fixed?”

We asked Cletisha Lovelace, the Director of Public Affairs for Virginia DSS, about the delay on Friday, and she said she would investigate the inquiry and get back to us as soon as she could.

On Monday, we reached out again, and Lovelace said:

"I am confirming that I am still actively working on this request. However, it is not likely that I'll have a response for you today. In full transparency, we have an internal process that requires multiple layers of review and approval by my internal leadership as well as our Secretary of Health and Human Resources for all media inquiries.

I'm currently working to get this through all the appropriate approvals and will follow up with you as soon as possible."

This is a developing story. Email the CBS 6 Newsroom if you have additional information to share.

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