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Gaps in Employment

4 Common Lies Told By Job Candidates

November 7, 2008 By Chris Miller

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.

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Tags: Workplace Violence,  Negligent Hiring Lawsuits, Gaps in Employment, Employment Background Checks

Photo Credit: ktylerconk

Filed Under: 2008 Best Employee Screening Posts, employment background checks, Negligent Hiring, Resume Fraud, Workplace Violence Tagged With: Background Check, Gaps in Employment, Negligent Hiring Lawsuits, Resume Fraud, Workplace Violence

Employee Screening Articles For October

October 31, 2008 By Chris Miller

In case you missed any of our employee screening articles for October, here’s a quick recap:

Sex Offenders and Halloween Safety Tips- Part 2

Sex Offenders and Halloween Safety Tips

Pre-Employment Drug Testing For Teachers

Background Checks For The Education Industry

Background Checks For Temporary Employees

Do You Have a Sex Offender Working For You?

Immigration Crackdown – HR Director Indicted

Drug-Free Work Week

Why Gaps In Employment Are A Red Flag

$100 Million For E-Verify

Hiring For Hotels: Why Screening Is Essential

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Filed Under: 2008 Best Employee Screening Posts, 2010 Best Employee Screening Posts, Background Checks, Best Practices For Employee Screening, Drug-Free Workplace, Employee Screening, Employee Screening Tips, employment background checks, Job Search, Negligent Hiring, Sex Offenders, Workplace Violence Tagged With: Background Check, Credit Report, Credit Reports, Drug Screening, Drug-Free Workplace, E-Verify, Education Background Checks, Education Screening, Employee Screening, Employee Theft, employment background checks, Form I-9, Gaps in Employment, Hotel Security, Immigration, Negligent Hiring, Negligent Hiring Lawsuits, Pre-Employment Screening, Sex Offender, Sex Offenders, Temp Workers, Vendor Background Checks, Workplace Violence

Why Gaps In Employment Are A Red Flag

October 3, 2008 By Chris Miller

Watch The Gap

Employers have a hard enough time just finding qualified job candidates. But, making matters worse is the fact that many of those candidates could be hiding a number of problems in their past. Job seekers routinely lie on their applications and resumes, concealing details that would make them a bad hire.

On the other hand, employers may be confronted with gaps in employment on a resume or application. And while the reasons behind the gaps may be completely innocent, verifying what the candidate was doing during the lapse is essential. If neglected, employers may expose themselves to potentially disastrous consequences. Below, I’ll describe 2 reasons why gaps in employment should raise a massive red flag.

#1 – Possible Criminal History

A potential hire may have spent a 2-year lapse by traveling through Europe and exploring the world. But, what if he didn’t? It’s entirely possible that he actually spent that time in prison. If an employer fails to check the gap in history, they might never uncover the details. Hiring that person could lead to employee theft, harm to the staff and a number of other outcomes.

#2 – Ineffective Background Checks

There’s no way for an employer to conduct an effective background check when a job candidate has an unexplained gap in history. The reason why is because criminal records are typically kept at the county level. If the employer doesn’t know where the candidate was during the lapse, it’s impossible to know which county, or counties, to search for a criminal history.

Filling In The Blanks

It’s absolutely critical for employers to find out the reasons behind gaps in employment. Those lapses can hide a period of incarceration as well as make it impossible to conduct thorough background checks. Employers and hiring staff need to hunt for the details in order to avoid taking on a bad hire. The alternative can be devastating.

Related Posts and Articles:

Does Your Job Applicant Have a Criminal Record?

Can You Tell If Your Applicant Is Lying?

Photo Credit: vasilken

Filed Under: 2011 Best Employee Screening Posts, Employee Screening Tips, Sex Offenders Tagged With: Employee Screening, Gaps in Employment

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