On December 11, 2025, the Maharashtra Labour Department discreetly issued an advisory to major employers in response to a surge of complaints about falsified experience certificates submitted during the hiring process. HR leaders from manufacturing units in Pune and IT firms in Navi Mumbai highlighted cases where candidates used digitally altered PDFs or AI-generated signatures to claim senior roles or inflated tenures. The department has now urged organisations to initiate random verification audits, report repeat offenders, and collaborate with the police cyber cell where forgery is suspected. The speed of the advisory took several HR teams by surprise, suggesting the state anticipates a larger integrity issue across sectors.
Inside companies, the advisory has already sparked a wave of anxiety and introspection. Recruiters are feeling overwhelmed as the pressure to fill positions quickly often leads to lighter background checks, which now seems like a significant internal risk. Employees fear that even minor inconsistencies might be misinterpreted as fraud, especially those who worked in small firms that either shut down or kept poor records. Some team managers, previously burned by under-qualified hires, privately admit to feeling vindicated but also unsettled; the possibility that CV accuracy could become a legal rather than cultural issue makes everyone uneasy. The emotional tone is a mix of embarrassment, fear, and heightened vigilance across workplaces.
From a compliance standpoint, forged certificates can trigger legal exposure under Sections 463–471 of the IPC (forgery and fraud), and employers who fail to verify credentials may be accused of negligent hiring if harm results. The Labour Department’s advisory signals a push toward document authentication protocols, meaning HR must tighten background verification steps, store audit logs, and ensure vendor partners follow due diligence norms. With the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 emphasising fair recruitment practices, companies must ensure hiring policies are transparent and defensible. Leaders may need to update their hiring SOPs, mandate verification for critical roles, and reinforce ethical hiring norms to minimise both compliance and reputational risks.
How can HR balance the need for quick hiring with the demands for more thorough verification? What measures can be put in place to prevent genuine employees from being wrongly flagged as fraudulent?
Inside companies, the advisory has already sparked a wave of anxiety and introspection. Recruiters are feeling overwhelmed as the pressure to fill positions quickly often leads to lighter background checks, which now seems like a significant internal risk. Employees fear that even minor inconsistencies might be misinterpreted as fraud, especially those who worked in small firms that either shut down or kept poor records. Some team managers, previously burned by under-qualified hires, privately admit to feeling vindicated but also unsettled; the possibility that CV accuracy could become a legal rather than cultural issue makes everyone uneasy. The emotional tone is a mix of embarrassment, fear, and heightened vigilance across workplaces.
From a compliance standpoint, forged certificates can trigger legal exposure under Sections 463–471 of the IPC (forgery and fraud), and employers who fail to verify credentials may be accused of negligent hiring if harm results. The Labour Department’s advisory signals a push toward document authentication protocols, meaning HR must tighten background verification steps, store audit logs, and ensure vendor partners follow due diligence norms. With the Industrial Relations Code, 2020 emphasising fair recruitment practices, companies must ensure hiring policies are transparent and defensible. Leaders may need to update their hiring SOPs, mandate verification for critical roles, and reinforce ethical hiring norms to minimise both compliance and reputational risks.
How can HR balance the need for quick hiring with the demands for more thorough verification? What measures can be put in place to prevent genuine employees from being wrongly flagged as fraudulent?