Pre Employement Verification - Is It Losing Its Importance

Dear All,

I am working as an HR Executive in a major infrastructure company in India. As an HR professional, I believe that when a company is hiring a new employee, pre-employment verification should be done mandatorily and effectively. However, I have come across instances where this process is either not carried out at all or is done merely for the sake of it.

I am curious to know if this issue is prevalent in all industries. It would be greatly appreciated if members could engage in a discussion regarding the significance of pre-employment verification and the best practices for conducting it.

Regards,
Harsha

Hi Harsha,

No, it's not the same in all companies. Maybe a few companies feel that background verification is not that important. But in most of the MNCs, it's a must. Only then will the employee be allotted an employee number and be given an access card. Until then, the employee will not have any direct access in the company.

Background verification is done not just to know the previous salary or work behavior, but it also tells us about the candidate's past. You never know if the person you are recruiting has a criminal record in their past. There are many examples, especially in ITES BPOs, where employees cheat their company for personal needs. Some people may even pose a harm to the country itself.

So, when recruiting a person, we should ensure that a thorough check has been done about the candidate's background from the company's end.

Regards,
Roopa

Hi Roopa,

I completely agree with you, but doing verification just for the namesake - will it fulfill the purpose? In many companies, they only call the previous employer and just check whether the candidate has really worked or not. Also, there are many external agencies which do the verifications, but can we really conclude that the process is 100% foolproof?

If we have to conduct an in-house pre-employment verification process, what are the areas of concentration and methodologies that we can adopt?

Regards,
Harsha.

Hi all,

It is true that pre-employment and personal verification are deteriorating day by day. However, I do believe it is as important as recruitment itself. Placing the right person in the right job is recruitment, but what if that person is not genuine? Is there any methodology for the same? Can you name some of the third-party verification companies?

Hi Harsha,

Pre-employment verification is important to verify some facts about the candidate.

Generally, the following may be verified:

1. His/her employment declaration (Companies, tenure, designations, salary, etc.)
- Responsibilities, reporting

2. His/her conduct with peers, colleagues, superiors, and habits

3. His/her integrity, both financial and otherwise, diligence, loyalty

4. His/her address proof

5. His/her qualifications

6. His/her criminal records/conviction by Court/any legal violations, if any

7. His/her family constitution

8. His/her indebtedness

9. His/her health condition and chronic/terminal illnesses, if any, via tests/reports.

This can be done by taking references from him/her and calling them to verify. This can also be done by sending/posting employment verification form to the superior(s) to fill and return. This can also be done via reliable professional verification agencies. This can also be done through professional networks.

The bigger issues faced by HR in the present times are:

1. Reliability of verification sources

2. Checking out on all the above may be difficult, near impossible

3. Frequent change of the superior in current/past organizations

4. Many companies which are non-existent/changed name/address/liquidated/taken over, etc.

At times, it becomes extremely difficult for candidates to provide adequate references given that organizations have closed down/changed entities/merged or amalgamated or have been simply taken over. Frequently, it is also observed that the previous bosses are no longer in the Company due to frequent job changes in modern times.

Rahul
09968270580

Pre and Post-Employment Screening Services

Indian industry is waking up to the fact that effective pre-employment screening is the starting point in creating an ethical culture within the organization.

Did You Know...

The average organisation loses 6% of its human resources to internal fraud and abuse

Nearly 41% of all resumes contain false or misleading information

A third of all application forms contain outright lies about experience, education, and ability to perform essential functions on the job

To be able to trust your employees with sensitive customer data, you first need to have access to all pertinent information about them.

Pre-Employment Screening: Managing Risk In The Workplace

Pre-employment screening is an effective way to limit liability in the workplace.

More importantly, it sends a message to applicants and employees, that integrity matters to your organisation and departures from ethics will not be tolerated.

Many specilised service providers offers a bouquet of pre and post-employment screening services like

Employment Screening / Background Check

Pre-employment background screening includes

Residence address validation

Previous employment check

Current employment check

Professional reference check

Educational records authentication

Criminal records confirmation

Global database sift

Post-employment lifestyle checks

Lifestyle mapping

Social reference check

Criminal records confirmation

Credit track

Contact synchronisation

Erroneous recruitment can be a costly affair.

But you must be thinking all these comes with a price tag?!! but here are some the facts.....

An effective pre-employment screening cost is a miniscule percentage of the recruitment, training and termination costs.

This a BUSINESS RISK.Now The million dollar Q is how do we manage this Menace? :?:



"RISK enters an organisation through just

TWO access points: PEOPLE & PROCESSES"

Here are some indicators-

Fraud: An Ever Growing Phenomenon

54% of organisations surveyed in India report economic crime in the last two years compared to 24% in the previous survey

A typical perpetrator of economic crime in India was a graduate or post graduate male between 31-50 years of age

Nearly one third of the frauds in the country are perpetrated by insiders

Nearly one third of the cases were detected by chance (tip-offs and accidents)

Known crimes may only represent the “tip of the iceberg” with many other frauds remaining undetected

With the increasing complexities of the business today, the fight against fraud is a constant struggle. Even if it is impossible to eradicate fraud, organisations must not drop their guard. Instead, they must constantly develop controls and build on the loyalty of their employees to ensure that, they do not provide an environment in which it can flourish.

Source: The PricewaterhouseCoopers Economic Crime Survey 2005 in India

Human Resource Risk Mitigation: How you Can Help your organisation-

Employment Screening / Background Checks

Vendor / Partner Checks

Pre-employment Drug Screening Tests and

Training

Dear All,

Please, anybody provide me a character certificate form.

Regards,
Ramakrishna
9848873507

Hi all,

We are running a verification agency by the name of Global Risk Management Services in Jharkhand and Bihar. We are associated with a few NBFCs, banks, and insurance companies. Global Risk Management Services is a specialist service provider in the banking, NBFC, and insurance sectors for field investigations, risk management, fraud control, and employee checks.

If you need these services in the Jharkhand and Bihar regions, please call or email us using the contact information provided below.

Thanks,
Sanjay - 09835107970
Nawin - 09835134092
Email - grms@grms.co.in
Website - grms.co.in

At the time of appointment itself, we should write a note related to informing whether the candidate is involved in any criminal record in his past or not. I think a criminal record is a big question to know in pre-employment verification. Thanks, Rahul, for your explanation.

Dear Harsha,

It's not that all companies are doing verification for namesake. There are MNCs that do verification to the depth. I got selected in one of the MNCs around three months back and am still waiting for my joining date. Now you can imagine how it is going on.

I want to ask a question to all the HR people here in this forum. What if the candidate commits a crime after joining the company? Even if the verification team doesn't find any criminal record during the investigation/verification, what role do HR and the verification team play in this case? Because there are cases where candidates have committed fraud after joining the company.

Thanks & Regards,
Swapnaja

QUOTE=harsha_chintu;180399]Dear All,

I am working as an HR Executive in an Infrastructure major in India. As an HR person, I feel that when a company is hiring a new employee, pre-employment verification should be done mandatorily and effectively. However, at times, I came across instances where this is not done at all. Even if it is done, it is just done for namesake.

I want to know whether this is the same in all industries. Also, it would be a great help if the members can have a discussion on its importance and the ways of doing pre-employment verification.

Regards,
Harsha.[/QUOTE]

Pre-employment verification is very important. Companies must cross-check and verify important details about new employees before hiring them and letting them work. This includes learning about company activities, data, strategy, etc. Previous records of any convictions or pending cases are vital. With false degrees and experience certificates easily available, no reputable company would neglect verification. References from new employees are a must and should be cross-verified. It is advisable to contact the persons quoted as references to obtain details about the prospective employee. Additionally, checking the individual's social profile and Googling their name can provide further information. Companies must ensure they are satisfied before employing any person to be on the safe side. The appearance of a new person may not necessarily reflect their true character and capabilities.

Harsha,

I was with Reliance for 11 months, then there was a case of harassment, and I left without notice. Will my new employer know about it if I don't tell them? Are there any chances of me being blacklisted? They did not have all my details like my certificates. Am I safe? Will my new employer know? It's a huge MNC, and they have a background checking agency.

Hello sir, I was with Reliance for 11 months, but due to harassment, I left without notice. Is it possible that my current employer/potential employer will know if I do not mention this company is a huge MNC?

Hi,

I have gone through your query. There is nothing for you to worry about. An ex-employer cannot jeopardize someone's future, as indicated by your concerns.

Moreover, I agree that background verifications are carried out in a very shoddy way by people who do not have any experience in the corporate world. Background verification serves no practical purpose, as past behavior is not a guarantee of future actions.

There is always a first time when every offender commits something wrong, and it may not necessarily have happened in the past.

What is the guarantee that a person with a clean and good record will always perform well throughout their life or not do anything wrong?

With Aadhaar and so many advances in police work, an offender cannot hide forever and will always be caught, whether they remain in India or flee abroad like so many high-profile offenders.

So, background verification is just a means for the concerned consultancies to earn money by scaring the employers about the dangers of similar offenses.

A successful background verification is not a guarantee of future performance. A KYC system, as employed by the bank, is good enough.

What can an employee do, or where can they run away after a fraud, if the employer has copies of their Aadhaar card, PAN card, bank account details, passport, voter's ID, etc.?

Please relax, and if any discrepancies are put forward by the background verification agency, fight your case. Since you have not done anything wrong, nor committed any frauds, why are you worried?

Warm regards.