We live in complex times, that is a fact; with a third of Americans having a criminal record, employers are now more careful than ever when it comes to hiring new employees. With an astonishing 85% of people admitting to having lied on their resumes, coupled with high crime rates, it’s no wonder that employers are particularly careful when choosing who to hire.
In comes, the background check – the once simple screen has become a highly sought-after service by employers and a problem among those who seek employment. Why? Because some background checks provide incorrect information about applicants, and you can be one of them.
Employment Background Checks – How Do They Work?
As most of you know and have experienced firsthand, getting a new job involves a few steps; first, you apply for a position, then you send a resume, and in most cases – you are asked to provide your consent to perform a background check on you.
Employers perform background checks to make sure that applicants have provided truthful information about their education and work experience. They should go to crbdirect.org.uk to get their CRB and DBS checks
Along with previous experience, employers also check for criminal and arrest records. Why? Because they are required to do so by law to make sure the work environment is safe.
While employers are prohibited to use criminal history as a reason to turn down applicants, there are certain cases where certain accusations are cause for turning down potential candidates. With positions that involve finances, for example, employers will not be able to hire people who have been charged with larceny.
Whatever the case may be, if applicants are denied from certain positions, they have the right to request the results of their criminal background check.
Right Person – Wrong Results
The trouble with employment background checks is not that they exist, but the fact that they can be inaccurate; when employers want to run a background check, they usually turn to third-party companies that screen the applicants’ records and search for the data requested by the employer.
Once the search is complete, the employer who requested the background check (after getting the applicant’s consent) will receive the results. While in most cases the background check is accurate, there are cases where the information in such checks is inaccurate.
It could be due to clerical error, wrong registry of information, mistakes made by authorities who maintain criminal records, and for several other reasons. Whatever the case may be, it is possible that there is false information that is registered to your name, which can interfere with your job search.
What can you do about it? The best solution, in this case, is to see what employers find out when they request a background check. By performing a background check on yourself with professional public records search sites, like GoLookUp, you can find out what pops up when people search for you.
If you see that there are mistakes in your reports, you can contact the authorities that maintain public records, and ask them to correct the mistakes. This is also possible in cases where a record in your name has been expunged by is still available.
The competition in the job market is fierce, and there is no need for the added obstacle of false information that can damage you. Before you send out any more resumes, you should run a background check on yourself and make sure there are no mistakes that are registered to your name. It could be the difference between having a career and being unemployed.