I. Overview Of
Topic
Unemployment is soaring. Many employers are freezing new hiring and few jobs are available. Despite a very modest improvement in recent months, the
jobmarket is hovering around 9.5% unemployment, unthinkable four
years ago. In most fields and industries, competition for the best jobs is almost overwhelming.
Is there anything you can do to
stand out from the pack?
Actually, there is a new idea
that's catching on.
Some job seekers are now paying
to have background check reports run on themselves, and then
offering these reports to prospective employers.
Why might this help you?
Simply because, first, it enables you to find out if any erroneous information is being reported about you. And second, it reassures
potential employers that the qualifications you present in
your resume are true and correct. Studies have found that as
many as 44% of resumes and applications contain inaccuracies
or outright deceptions.
Nowadays, before an employer
hires you, he/she will almost always conduct a background
check. The fact you have presented your own
self-background-check suggests that a problem is not likely to
crop up when the employer runs its own background check. In other
words, it suggests that the employer will not uncover
something which will cause him/her to have to disqualify you
right at the end of the hiring process thereby wasting
company time and resources.
What's more, as said, if by chance there
is some mistake being made in compiling your background check,
for example, a State is erroneously reporting you have a
criminal record when if fact you don't, running your own
background check will alert you to this problem so you can
take steps to correct it before an employer sees it.
Bottom Line: This may be a good preemptive
strategy in today's killer jobmarket. But how do you go about
it and how much does it cost?
HOW EMPLOYMENT SCREENING
WORKS
First, employment background checks are
not usually referred to as "background checks" by human
resources professionals -- and they actually consist of much more than simple background checks.. They're called "Pre-Employment Checks"
or "Employment Screening Reports."
Certain companies specialize in
doing these reports for employers, in fact, it's a big
business. Each report usually contains at least four items of
information about you: identity verification (based on
verifying your social security number), educational and
employment verification, and a criminal records check. These are the basic elements of a standard employment screening report (though other types of information, such as credit checks, driving records, bankruptcies, etc. are included in the reports used by some industries).
You may ask, What about job
references? Checking job references is not part of a standard
employment screening report. These reports usually only verify
past employment and possibly request your "reason for leaving"
from your previous employers. The task of calling up the past
supervisors and asking for verbal references is often left to the
prospective employer.
Nowadays, most employers get
their employment screening reports via the Internet. The
employment screening company develops its report on you then
posts it to a secure web page, giving the URL (Web page address) and the password to the
employer that ordered it.
There's no reason you can't hire
a screening company to do this for you, i.e., to develop an
Employment Screening report on you, thus enabling you to make it available to
any prospective employer you select.
What does one of these reports look like? Click here to view a sample report.
GETTING YOUR SELF-CHECK
EMPLOYMENT SCREENING REPORT
The strategy is simple. Get
your own employment screening report done, then offer it to an
employer as a way of reassuring him that you're on the
up-and-up. This is not at all an uncommon practice these days. You can attach a printed copy of your Self-Check Employment Screening Report to your resume, or you can simply provide the URL (and password) where the prospective employer can view it online -- that is, include it in your resume or mention it in your cover letter. But will it help? Well, consider a situation where
he or she is interviewing three equally-qualified people. You're the
only one who's taken the initiative to offer him this type of
reassurance. It's got to be a plus in your favor, regardless of your field or the level of job you're applying for.
Our firm, Washington Research
Associates, Inc., has been in the employment screening
business since 1994 (see our business website, E-EmploymentScreening ), and we'll gladly accommodate your request for
a full confidential Self-Check Employment Screening report. We'll post
your completed report on a secure web page and provide you
with the URL and password so that it will be
available to prospective employers for review at your
discretion.
As to the price of the
report, you'll receive our standard 30% discount for new clients, making the price for
your self-check report only $77.
ORDERING PROCESS
If you'd like to order a Self-Check Employment Screening Report, send us an email with the subject heading, "Self-Check Employment Screening Report." Simply indicate in your email that you are interested in having a Self-Check Employment Screening Report conducted and what your field or occupation is, or what type of position you're seeking. We'll get back to you right away with a personalized response on how to get and then utilize a Self-Check appropriate for your specific field or occupation. (Note: We'll need to have a signed release from you faxed to us before we can prepare your report. A release form will be provided in our return email.)
By the way, an additional important benefit of having a self-check report done is that it will alert you if anyone
has been using your identity falsely. If identity theft has been occurring it will be evident to you when you review the "Identity Verification" section of your report.
WHAT IF THE REPORT COMES BACK
WITH MISINFORMATION?
But what if your report comes
back with misinformation? Suppose, for example, it erroneously indicates
you've been convicted of a serious crime, or suppose one of
your former employers misreports that you never worked for
them?
This would mean that
misinformation has been reported by a State government or by your former
employer. This does happen on occasion and it's
important that you discover that it's happening to
you before a potential employer sees your report!
If you do find misinformation,
then you need to get it corrected before jumping into
the jobmarket. Your first step should be to contact us to find
out where the misinformation came from, then to get in touch with that
governmental or business organization and get it corrected.
There will be an email address and telephone number on your
report which you can use to contact us.
Again, to have a Self-Check Employment
Screening report conducted, email us and we'll send you the needed information and release form immediately by return email. We'll supply your completed online report, which you can then offer to prospective employers, in 1-2 business days.
II. RELATED WEB SEARCH GUIDE ARTICLES
:
Career Information
Workers Compensation
Illegal Aliens
Recommended Reading
III.Discussion
Group
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