Prior Employment Verification confirms employment, dates, position, job performance, and rehire status.

PURPOSE: This report will help verify information that the applicant has provided on the application i.e. make sure the applicant has the experience alleged on the application and assure that the applicant is not trying to hide ”employment gaps” in their past.
Many companies now have a policy of providing limited information about previous employees. Accordingly, many human resource personnel feel that asking for prior employment verification and eligibility for rehire is a fruitless task.

We think it is important for your firm to perform this search for a number of reasons. First. almost one-third of the time, it is possible to get an applicant’s supervisor, assuming your application asks for the name and number, to comment on the applicant’s performance. Second, many are under the impression that the purpose of this process is just to get bad information about people. This is not so. You can, for
example, find out an applicant will receive glowing remarks from a prior supervisor- providing just enough information to make a better, more informed decision. Third, courts are growing increasingly, intolerant of employers that hide behind a policy that provides only name and dates of employment. This is particularly true when the individual exhibited documented incidents of behavior that were dangerous to
coworkers and/or the public. Suppose you, as a prospective employer, make the effort to ask about the individual’s performance of the previous employer. Suppose the previous employer either lies to you or does not inform you of documented dangerous behavior. Suppose further that you hire the individual and the individual engages in similar behavior that injures either a coworker or member of the public. Because
you documented your request and were not provided information about the individual’s behavior while working for the prior employer, you have established the groundwork for a tort of negligent referral against the previous employer.

As mentioned earlier, if you include the “Supervisor” you will get a more detailed report. If the listed Supervisor is no longer with the company it should be noted. It is important to include Employer name, city, state and phone when possible. If it is company policy of the employer to supply dates of employment and job title only, it should be well noted by either your staff or your service provider.