What is Employment Verification?

What is Employment Verification?  Employment verification confirms a person’s previous or current job status.  Often employers need to request verification of job candidates or respond to requests from employers, lenders, landlords, the federal government, and others.

  Employers can check employment history as part of an employee background check to confirm the work experience you have transferred to them and to make sure you have the appropriate professional background and work experience required for the job.

  The employer will usually verify the job titles and start and end dates for each job, and sometimes the salary and duties of the job.  The employer may also ask about the reason for termination and whether the candidate qualifies for re-employment.

  Employers become very anxious when a candidate claims to have years of experience, when in reality they do not or when the candidate misrepresents his titles, achievements, or past responsibilities.  These are examples of the types of inconsistencies that can appear in a background check that may indicate to employers that the candidate is intentionally dishonest.

  Discrepancies between the information the candidate provided and the information returned by HireRight will generally be noted in the background report, therefore, during the hiring process, it is best to provide employers with the most accurate information possible regarding your employment history to avoid any potential discrepancies and to avoid a delay in processing the report.

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  To verify your employment history, HireRight generally contacts former employers (or their representatives) directly to confirm the information you have provided.

  If HireRight is unable to verify your information with your previous employer, HireRight may require you to provide a W-2 or other document as evidence of your work history.  It is good that these documents are readily available during a background check in case this situation arises, especially if you know, for example, that your former employer is unemployed.

Why would you need employment verification?

 Employment verification protects the recruiter from hiring an applicant who is not honest with their resume and does not possess the skills, qualifications, or experience needed to complete the job.  Ensures that the recruiting company has the best employee for the vacancy.  In the event that a lender or government agency requests job verification, it makes sure that the applicant is eligible for the services or benefits offered.

How do you verify employment?

  The employee verification process can vary from company to company depending on whether the process is completed internally or through a third party.

  Generally, the recruitment company will inform the candidate that it intends to conduct the job verification, which usually involves the applicant signing a waiver.  Then, the recruitment company will provide a form to send to the applicant’s previous employers or enlist the services of the employment verification company.  From there, the job verification form, listing the required information, is sent to the applicant’s previous employers.  They will complete the form and return it to the hiring company for review.

Do all employers do employment verification?

  Job verification is often used by government agencies, potential lenders, and employers.  Government agencies often use employment verification for court cases or to assess qualifications for federal programs and benefits.

  Lenders often use job verification to ensure that the loan applicant has a steady job with sufficient income to pay off the loan.  Prospective employers often use job verification to accurately determine an applicant’s education, experience, skills, and qualifications to complete a specific job.

  Why employment verification is important

  Firms or individuals may seek employment verification for a number of reasons.  Several common scenarios include:

• When a lender wants to originate a loan

  The primary benefit to lenders is your ability to make payments in a timely manner according to your loan agreement.  It is illegal in some states for future employers to require your current salary information, but a lender can require proof of your earnings to assess your creditworthiness.

• What a property owner wants to issue a lease agreement

  Like lenders, landlords will want to make sure you can cover rental payments.  Real estate owners will take into account other assets like savings and residual income, but your monthly salary that you earn is the most important piece of information for them to gain insight into your ongoing financial position.

• Work visa holders validating their employment

  Business visas usually require the visa holder to maintain work for the duration of their stay in the host country.  In some cases, visa holders may be permitted to transfer to a new job while maintaining the visa.  Applicants and visa holders should be proactive about their residency requirements in order to avoid being deported or losing their employment verification.

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What Does an Employment Verification Reveal?

• The dates of employment

  David’s employment verification confirms that his most recent position was a Director of Customer Service, but he held the position for only four months instead of the full year mentioned on his résumé.  Whether this fraud is a mistake or an outright lie, David may not actually have the experience you need for the open job.

• Job title

  The moderator role that David claimed two years ago was in fact the position of team leader that required no high-level management.

• Salary information

  David claims he earned $ 40,000 in his first leadership position in nearly five years, but a check on his salary confirms that the team captain’s position actually paid him only $ 33,000 at his peak salary.

• Eligibility for re-employment

  The least recently mentioned job by David says he would be eligible for re-employment if he applied.  The HR representative says in his most recent position that he will not be eligible for re-employment.

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• The reason for leaving

  A check on David’s latest position reveals that his role as manager was only for four months because his job was terminated for stealing office supplies.  The HR representative says the company has evidence that David took home office chairs without permission.

• Performance details when available and requested

  Performance details should be sought from references who have worked directly with the applicant for an extended period of time.  The references may provide an indication of future performance by sharing examples of the candidate’s teamwork abilities, communication skills, behavior, and more.

  Previous employers agree to provide professional references to David.  Another employer says David was a hard worker, but had trouble motivating and managing large teams effectively.  The business owner says before that David was punctual, yet he often failed to prioritize the most important work to achieve management goals.  Will your customer service department thrive with this kind of leadership?