Past is often prologue, to paraphrase Shakespeare, so employers should verify the past employment of those they're interested in hiring, particularly since organizations might be liable if they hire someone who later harms someone else, according to Lester Rosen, an attorney and CEO of Employment Screening Resources in Novato, Calif. On June 13, he walked attendees of the SHRM Annual Conference & Expo 2023 in Las Vegas through the process of past employment verification.
This process may seem like an empty exercise because former employers usually only tell prospective employers the start date, end date and job title of the individual, but Rosen said it should be done anyway as part of due diligence in the hiring process. He also recommended ways to try to squeeze out a little more information than is typically given—to wind up, in other words, with more of a reference check than an employment verification.
"Don't start with the hard stuff," Rosen said. Instead, ask for the start date, end date and job title, then ask what the job entailed and if the candidate was able to do that. Be sure to document that the prospective employer made these good-faith efforts to check on the applicant's work history.
Who Should Verify Past Jobs?
Rosen said past job verification is typically done by someone in one of three different roles:
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