Analysis of HireRight’s EMEA and APAC screenings between July and September 2016 has shown:
- Nearly two thirds (63%) of job applications contained errors or issues in Q3 2016, the same high levels as seen in the first half of the year.
- Education and Employment remain the verifications most vulnerable to issues.
With discrepancy rates remaining at 63% in Q3, the importance of thorough vetting is again clear to ensure that undesirable candidates don’t make it through the door of your company. However, many discrepancies can be the result of innocent errors such as incorrect dates of study or employment. These mistakes are easily avoided when candidates are thoroughly prepared for a background check.
Spotlight on Education and Employment discrepancies
Verification checks on candidates’ education and employment history claims frequently uncover issues and are commonly the top two areas in which errors are discovered.
Between July and September 2016, 21% of education and 15% of employment checks contained discrepancies.
Two-thirds (66%) of the discrepancies discovered in education history were errors in the dates of attendance or award received. Additionally, 550 education discrepancies between July and September 2016 were incorrect grades provided by candidates. Whilst attendance dates may be an innocent mistake by a candidate, errors with the award or grade received could be a candidate wishing to embellish their achievements to get the job.
When looking into the employment history discrepancy details, the data reveals that half (50%) of discrepancies are incorrect dates of employment. Perhaps more worrying, over a quarter (29%) misrepresented the position they held, while a further 308 discrepancies showed no record of the stated employment at all.
These detailed figures highlight the importance of a rigorous and thorough vetting programme, to ensure you know who you are hiring.
All statistics based on a sample of over 239,000 checks conducted by HireRight of EMEA and APAC applications from July-September 2016.
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HireRight
HireRight is here to help guide you through the biggest screening challenges so you can focus on what’s important to you; attracting top talent. HireRight provides employment background screening services to organisations of any size, in every industry, and nearly anywhere.
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