In case you missed any of our employee screening articles for January, here’s a quick recap of our most popular:
Subscribe to our blog so you don’t miss any helpful employee screening tips and articles like these.
Photo Credit: foto3116
Resume Fraud
Resume Fraud Pays
Microsemi Corporation, a semiconductor manufacturer that supplies military and aerospace customers, decided to let CEO James Peterson keep his job even though he lied on his resume. On 1/29/09, the board decided Peterson’s value to shareholders outweighed the fact that he never earned a diploma from Brigham Young University in Utah, where he attended classes in 1979 and 1980.
He will be penalized with a $100,000 fine and forego a bonus for fiscal 2009.
According to the company’s press release the Board has adopted a number of Company-wide remedial measures, which include:
- The Company will conduct background checks on all current and future Section 16 Officers and Directors.
- The Board will confirm that the Company’s Human Resources Department is continuing to verify an individual’s credentials prior to making an offer of employment or when senior personnel join the Company as a result of an acquisition.
- The Board will amend the Company’s Code of Ethics to make clear that misrepresentations of one’s credentials constitute an express breach of the Code, and could result in punishment including financial penalties and termination.
- Requiring all press releases to undergo an appropriate, documented review and verification process prior to issuance.
I’m surprised that Microsemi Corporation didn’t have these measures in place already.
Learn more about resume fraud.
Diploma Mills – The New Resume Lie?
Screening potential employees and conducting background checks is already a challenging task for many employers. Diploma mills are making that challenge even more daunting. These “mills” sell diplomas and degrees to any person who is willing to part with enough money. A bachelor’s degree in computer science may cost as little as a few hundred dollars. A PhD in criminal justice may cost $2,000. These “mill” degrees are worthless.
If you’re an employer, this should worry you. Below, I’ll explain 2 ways in which diploma mills impact employers. Then, I’ll describe how to avoid being duped.
2 Costly Impacts For Employers
Job candidates blatantly lie on resumes. And they do it more often you might think (some estimates put the number at over 40%). Add fake degrees into the hiring equation and the problem grows even larger. This has 2 major impacts on employers:
1 – Misrepresented Education
Hiring any employee can be a costly process. But, hiring a candidate who has a fake degree can be even more expensive. After all, not only has your hiring staff wasted valuable time, but candidates who are actually qualified may no longer be available.
2 – Fraudulent Reimbursement
If a current employee gets a fake degree, he may be tempted to seek reimbursement from your company. Again, the degree itself is worthless. Reimbursing an employee for the degree is akin to throwing money down the drain.
Background Checks And Employee Screening
The first step to dealing with this problem is to broadly and openly communicate your screening policy to job candidates. Mention that your hiring staff follows a strict screening process that includes verifying education. Often, this alone is enough to discourage would-be frauds from applying. Then, of course, you need to follow through with your policy.
The second step is to conduct ongoing background checks and screening on your current staff. Not only should you do so regularly; you should do so whenever there’s a need. For example, if an employee earns a degree while in your company’s employ, and seeks reimbursement, verify the authenticity of the university.
If you lack the staff or resources to do these things, partner with an experienced employee screening service that can help insulate your company from costly mistakes.
Further Reading
- Diploma Mills 101
- Degree Mills: An Old Problem And A New Threat
- Important Questions About Accreditation, Degree Mills And Accreditation Mills
Photo Credit: gadgetdude
Resume Fraud May Increase As The Economy Worsens
In a story in today’s Wall Street Journal experts warn that the prevalence of resume fraud may increase as the economy worsens. As more people search for jobs — and become increasingly desperate to land them — hiring managers should be on guard.
Key Points From The Article:
- Executive candidates most frequently lie about reasons for leaving a previous post, results and accomplishments, and past job responsibilities, a 2004 survey of consultants at executive recruiter Korn/Ferry International found.
- Academic credentials were the fifth-most frequently exaggerated type of information seen by executive recruiters.
- Executives who have been caught with inflated credentials often turn out to have embellished their records early in their careers. For example, people may claim degrees from universities they attended, but from which they never graduated.
- A job seeker may say he served as chief executive of a company where he worked for four years; that doesn’t necessarily mean he was CEO for all four years.
- One mistake companies make is not ascertaining how much vetting their executive recruiters do. Most search firms attempt to verify some executive credentials, but some “take a very hands-off approach,” says Jenifer DeLoach, who oversees background checks for corporate clients at Kroll. “They find the candidate, and a background search … is the responsibility of the client.”
To learn more about resume fraud and employee screening, read my recent post 4 Common Lies Told By Job Candidates and an article Employer’s 5-Step Guide to Employee Screening.
Subscribe to our blog so you don’t miss any news, tips and articles like this one.
Photo Credit: Dan Ancona
4 Common Lies Told By Job Candidates
Recent estimates suggest that over 50% of job applicants lie on their resumes. And when asked, nearly 70% of college graduates claim they would consider lying in order to get a job. For employers, this should be a major concern. At best, hiring an employee who lied on her resume wastes valuable time and resources. At worst, it can lead to workplace violence, theft, and negligent hiring lawsuits.
As applicants become increasingly comfortable with lying to potential employers, screening and background checks have never been more important. Today, I’ll expose 4 of the most common lies told by job candidates.
Lie #1: “Yes, I Earned That Degree”
Applicants lie about the degrees they’ve earned all the time. In some cases, they may have attended the school, but never finished their coursework. In other cases, they may have never attended the school in the first place. It’s a common lie because employers often fail to verify the information.
Lie #2: “I Don’t Have A Criminal Record”
Sometimes, applicants will lie outright about their criminal past. Other times, they’ll change small details such as how their name is spelled, the date they were born, or the cities in which they’ve lived. This can be a major hiring issue and employers need to carefully validate what they’re being told.
Lie #3: “I’ve Been Steadily Employed”
A lot of applicants realize that a gap in their employment history raises eyebrows. From an employer’s perspective, the gap may imply that the applicant spent in prison. So, candidates will lie about it, disguising gaps by changing dates or even creating jobs from thin air.
Lie #4: “My Salary At My Previous Job Was…”
Potential hires often inflate their salaries to give them more leverage over future salary negotiations. Offering a compensation package based upon misleading salary information can cost an employer tens of thousands of dollars.
Finding The Truth
Hiring an employee who has lied on their resume or application has become a significant problem for employers. But, the lies can be easily exposed by your hiring staff or an employee screening service. By doing extensive background checks on applicants, you can discover the truth. And that can make your business less vulnerable to a bad hire.
Subscribe to our blog so you don’t miss any helpful tips and articles like this one.
Tags: Workplace Violence, Negligent Hiring Lawsuits, Gaps in Employment, Employment Background Checks
Photo Credit: ktylerconk