It is quite amazing just how many employers in small businesses do not realise the importance of employee screening for credit and financial issues.
During December 2009 we focused on one sector in the small business market, public houses. Almost all transactions are in cash, so within this employment sector you would expect to find that employers are particular about who they check?
Our small survey covered 20 public houses taken at random from Yellow. We called and asked to speak with the pub owner or manager. After introducing ourselves we asked the following questions:
1 – Do you employ staff to work in your pub?
2 – If yes, then do you carry out any type of financial background checks or identity checks?
The response was in line with what we expected but nonetheless quite shocking when you think of the potential consequences.
Out of the 20 pubs we randomly surveyed we found that all employed part-time or full-time staff who had access to the till, and only 2 (two) of those we surveyed carried out financial screening of their employees.
At Credit Check Services we find around 10% of those checked have a CCJ or Court Decree and in some cases we even find that the identity does not exist. Based on these averages this would suggest two of the pubs we surveyed are employing staff to handle cash that have outstanding court-enforced debts.
