These findings are taken from the Chartered Institute of
Personnel and Development's annual Recruitment and Retention
Survey, which will be published in full next week.
The survey of the recruitment and retention experiences of 715
UK
employers also asked employers how often they
carried out various checks on candidates' applications, and found
that 23% of employers do not always take up candidates' references
– although 90% said they do so mostly or always.
Regarding other routine checks:
- 20% of organisations either rarely or never check on absence
records, with a further 19% doing so only sometimes;
- 24% of organisations never (11%) or rarely (13%) check on
academic qualifications, with a further 19% doing so only
sometimes;
- Employers seem likely to satisfy themselves about an employee's
application mostly on the basis of a check on their most recent
employment history – only 6% never or rarely check this.
Rebecca Clake, Recruitment Adviser at the Chartered Institute of
Personnel and Development, told employers to be careful.
"A strong economy and low unemployment means many employers are
struggling to find applicants," she said. "But there are risks that
go with rushing candidates into fill vacancies without pausing to
make basic checks. If you don't have rigorous pre-employment checks
in place, you risk being a soft touch for people who are willing to
be dishonest to get work or advance their careers."
She also pointed out that if all employers carried out checks on
a more regular basis, it's more likely those people who genuinely
fit the criteria for the job will be successful.
CIPD
recommends that employers should always take
up references to check facts such as qualifications gained and
previous jobs held. However, employers should also take care not to
rely on subjective opinion with regard to competence or
performance.
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