Online Employment Verification: Complete Guide

In today’s competitive job market, hiring the right candidate is crucial. Online employment verification has become an essential tool for employers, allowing them to quickly and efficiently confirm information provided by candidates. This process not only protects your company from potential fraud but also helps you make informed hiring decisions, ensuring that new employees possess the necessary skills and experience. In this guide, we will explain step by step how to effectively conduct online employment verifications.

Employment Verification: Using Online Verification Platforms

Specialized companies: There are various online platforms (e.g., Xref, HireRight, Checkr, and Emptor) that specialize in employment verification. These platforms automate the process, from contacting previous employers to generating comprehensive reports.

Benefits: Time and resource savings, greater accuracy, standardized reports, and compliance with privacy regulations.

How it works: Generally, the candidate’s CV is uploaded or the information is entered manually. The platform handles the rest.

What is employment verification?

Employment verification is a fundamental process to ensure quality and trust in candidates who will become part of your team. This involves reviewing and confirming information provided by candidates during hiring. Through verification, you obtain precise validation of a candidate’s work, educational, and personal background. This not only ensures that candidates possess the necessary skills and experience but also protects the company from potential fraud or inconsistencies in the information presented.

Selection of Suitable Candidates

Employment verification gives you the opportunity to thoroughly evaluate the information provided by candidates. By confirming their work and educational background, you can ensure they have the skills and experience necessary to effectively perform the job. This process is crucial for selecting suitable candidates who meet your company’s requirements. Additionally, a comprehensive verification helps build a solid and reliable work team aligned with the organization’s objectives and values.

Complement with Online Verification Tools

Professional social networks (LinkedIn): Verify the candidate’s work experience on their LinkedIn profile and search for references. Caution: LinkedIn is not 100% reliable, it should be used as a complement. The competitiveness of today’s job market requires the use of online tools to conduct rigorous employment verifications.

Google search: A simple Google search of the candidate’s name can reveal additional information about their professional background.

Company websites: Visit the websites of companies where the candidate claims to have worked to verify their existence and, in some cases, find information about current and former employees.

Using Certificates or Social Security Lists

In some countries, such as Mexico, Peru, or Chile, there is the possibility to directly consult, or ask the candidate for, an employment certification that includes part of their history. Using this information, you can complement and verify the information that the candidate may provide with their CV.

Some examples of employment verification certificates are:

• Certiadulto or certijoven (Certificado único laboral) in Peru

• List of contributed weeks generated by IMSS (Mexican Social Security Institute)

• Certificate of labor and social security background

Handling Discrepancies in the Process

Online recording and tracking: Verification platforms usually offer a system to record and track discrepancies.

Clear and documented communication: Maintain a written record of communication with the candidate through email, WhatsApp, or other online platforms. Phone remains a valid option, but offering communication alternatives can make it easier.

Important Considerations

Candidate consent: It is essential to obtain the candidate’s consent before conducting any type of employment verification.

Legal aspects and privacy: Learn about the relevant laws and regulations in your country or region regarding background checks and data privacy. Organizations issuing employment verification letters must be transparent and reliable in verification.

Using Sol by Emptor and Emptor Forms, you can ensure direct confirmation of candidate consent and stay protected when using personal data provided as part of a selection process.

Legal Considerations

Employment verification must be conducted legally and ethically. It is important to consider the labor laws and regulations of each jurisdiction before conducting an employment verification. Some countries may have restrictions on what information can be requested and how it can be used. Therefore, it is advisable to consult with legal experts or human resources professionals to ensure compliance with all applicable regulations. This not only protects the company from potential legal sanctions but also ensures respect for candidates’ privacy and rights.

Frequently Asked Questions for Employment Verification

Here are some examples of questions that can be asked during verification:

• Employment start and end dates.

• Candidate’s position and responsibilities.

• Reason for candidate’s departure.

• Candidate’s salary (this may be restricted in some jurisdictions).

• Eligibility for rehire.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is it important to request an employment verification letter?

Requesting an employment verification letter is crucial to validate employees’ employment and compensation for potential employers or financial institutions. These letters are essential in processes such as loan applications, rentals, or immigration status, and ensure that necessary information is provided without overstepping.

Common Mistakes

One of the most common mistakes is not properly drafting employment verification letters, which can lead to privacy issues and lack of necessary information.

Another frequent error is not verifying the candidate’s employment history, which can result in significant inconsistencies between actual work history and what is declared in job applications.

Common Mistakes in Employment Verification

Whether you’re hiring employees or freelancers, there are some things you shouldn’t do as an employer when it comes to background checks. Some common mistakes include:

• Not obtaining candidate consent before starting the verification process.

• Not complying with labor laws and regulations of each jurisdiction.

• Not protecting candidates’ privacy and confidentiality.

• Not conducting a thorough and accurate verification of work and educational background.

Avoiding these mistakes is crucial to conduct an effective employment verification process that respects candidates’ rights.

Best Practices for Employment Verification

To conduct an effective and efficient employment verification, it’s important to follow some best practices. Some of these include:

• Obtaining candidate consent before starting the verification process.

• Complying with labor laws and regulations of each jurisdiction.

• Protecting candidates’ privacy and confidentiality.

• Conducting a thorough and accurate verification of work and educational background.

• Using a reliable and experienced employment verification company.

It’s important to remember that employment verification is a fundamental process to ensure quality and trust in candidates who will become part of your team. By following these best practices, you can ensure that your hiring process is rigorous and transparent, and that your employees are suitable to perform their functions effectively.

Look for Expert Partners in the Type of Hiring

For roles that you don’t usually hire for, or that are particularly strategic and where a wrong candidate could be very costly, you can look for expert partner companies in the type of hiring you’re seeking. Leading recruitment companies like Nexton can help you hire the best engineers in Latin America, and directly use services from platforms like Emptor to automatically validate candidate security. Like them, there are many other organizations from various industries that use Emptor to improve their employment verification steps.

Conclusions

Online employment verification offers a quick, efficient, and secure solution for employers. While online tools simplify the process, it’s important to remember the importance of accuracy and compliance with privacy laws. Using a combination of specialized platforms and complementary online tools will help you make informed hiring decisions and build a solid and reliable team.

To automate this process, while maintaining a human touch aligned with your brand, consider using Sol by Emptor. This trusted hiring agent helps you consult with candidates about their information and communicates (via text and voice) with potential past employers, simplifying a process that would otherwise be difficult and time-consuming. With Sol by Emptor, you can optimize your employment verifications without sacrificing the quality of human interaction.