All too often employers believe the CV headlines in terms of qualifications and previous employment roles and whilst most employees are being relatively clear about these areas a significant proportion are not.  So the question is are you getting the best candidate from your employment screening or are you instead getting the one who is the best at the interview?

In America employment background screening is common place with a reported 80% of companies using selection processes that include third part companies to screen applicants, a key component being CV verification. These affects are now starting to be seen in the UK where companies seek contracts with USA based organisations who now often include a contractual requirement on their suppliers to implement rigorous employment screening of staff involved.

Credit Check Services also found that 1 in 3 employers requesting CRB checks did not know what level of CRB check would apply to the employment role, in part this is due to the lack of clarity provided on how much information a company is permitted to use for employment screening.

For example, there are currently three levels of CRB checks that can be carried out, these are termed “basic”, “standard” and “enhanced”.  The basic CRB check provides details of any criminal convictions that are determined as “unspent”.  The standard CRB check provides additional details of “spent” criminal convictions along with and police cautions or reprimands.  The enhanced check takes this one step further to provide additional information relating to adult and children’s registers and relevant information recorded by Government bodies.

The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 provides an opportunity for those with “spent” convictions to gain employment without having their previous criminal record being taken into account.  However as some types of employment are considered sensitive legislation was passed producing an “exceptions order” listing types of employment where an employer is permitted to see information on convictions as provided for in the “standard” CRB check. 

So why is this so important?  Well consider a situation where an employer does not know what level of CRB check is appropriate, consequently using the “standard” CRB check to screen an applicant and rejecting them for a role due to a “spent” conviction.  If the employment role did not come under the “exceptions order” then the employer may be breaking the law by discriminating unfairly against the applicant.

It is fundamental for all employers to ensure that “appropriate” employment screening is applied to selection processes, failure to do so could result in potential litigation for discrimination.

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.

When an on-line search is carried out in court databases it requires a name, date of birth and an address.  If all 3 match then any CCJs or court Decrees will be found for the address provided.  If the address does not match then the applicant will show up as having a clean record – even though this may not be the case.  This happens because court databases will often not be updated with the applicant’s address(es) subsequent to an original entry where a court order was recorded.

The only way to ensure a full search of court databases is to first carry out a linked address search, and then search against each of the linked addresses found along with the applicant’s name and date of birth.  The linked address search against court databases helps to ensure that any court orders against an applicant are found. We strongly recommend that you only use the services of a company who include linked address searches, otherwise your CCJ/bankruptcy/Insolvency check may not be worth the paper it is written on!