Understanding Employment and Education Verifications

When receiving applicants for employment, one of the first things looked at is their resume. Unfortunately, what may seem like the perfect candidate on our screens or on paper may not always be the case. As a result, falsifying crucial information to seem desirable has become a new norm for applicants. 55% of Americans have lied on their resume once, per a survey conducted by StandOutCV, which focused on 1,785 Americans 18 or older who were employed between October 12 – 26, 2022. Potentially 42.5 million people lied their way into a job in 2022. 

By now, you’ve likely heard the story of the newly elected Congressperson from NY, George Santos, and his dubious personal history, which came to light after his election, with more information still emerging. While the Santos story includes alleged financial crimes in multiple countries and lies and embellishments about his personal history that are still being investigated, there were some essential parts of his résumé like his education and employment history, that were easily disproved as soon as someone began to look. Simply verifying his résumé would have uncovered truthful details regarding Santos’ employment history and education. However, you don’t need investigative reporters spending hours upon hours researching your job candidates to confirm basic information about their credentials.

With all of this factual data, ongoing reports of George Santos deceiving the public into believing information simply because it was listed on his résumé, and the realization that this could occur within your organization should call for proactive measures. Employment and education verifications are an essential part of any organization that serves a vulnerable population. Verifications provide the peace of mind that your staff or volunteers have the necessary credentials to hold their current positions. In addition, verifying this information can help protect your organization from potential liability issues. Let’s examine how employment and education verifications work and why they are essential. 

What is an Employment Verification?

An employment verification is a process for confirming that an employee or volunteer has the qualifications required to do their job. This type of verification typically involves contacting an individual’s previous employers and verifying that the person did indeed work for them in the past, had the appropriate job title, and dates of employment. It typically includes checking references provided by the employee or volunteer to ensure that they have a good work history as well. During a supervisor interview, you can go more in-depth on duties and credentials from the applicant’s last role(s).

What is an Education Verification?

An education verification is similar to an employment verification but instead focuses on confirming that someone has obtained a certain level or type of degree or certification. This type of verification requires contacting educational institutions such as universities, vocational schools, and trade schools directly to confirm that someone was enrolled in their program and received their degree or certification.

Benefits of Employment and Education Verifications

Verifying both employment and education information gives organizations comfort and reassurance when hiring new staff members or volunteers. It helps ensure that those individuals have the necessary experience needed to complete their roles effectively and efficiently. Additionally, it protects organizations from potential liability issues should something go wrong with a staff member or volunteer’s performance in their position due to a lack of qualifications or experience. By conducting these verifications on potential employees or volunteers prior to their involvement with an organization, employers or organizations can reduce the risks associated with poor hiring decisions. A bulletproof and consistent verification process may deter potential offenders from targeting your organization. Failure to do so could allow offenders to slip through the cracks, jeopardizing the safety of your consumer, your organization’s reputation, and your trust within the community. 

If you are not currently conducting verifications as part of your background screening program, you should review your program and determine if verifications align with your organization’s needs. By ensuring that all staff members have accurate information about their qualifications and experience is essential not only for them to excel and do their best work for your organization and more importantly, to protect the vulnerable population you serve. 

Praesidium offers education and employment verifications. These types of verifications can take 24-48 hours to process. Contact us today to learn more! info@praesidiuminc.com

Sources:

https://standout-cv.com/usa/study-fake-job-references-resume-lies#how-many

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-64127827