The labor market is very competitive; recruiters are fighting to get their positions filled—a significant impact on if recruiters are successful or not is the speed of the hiring process. If education or employment verifications must be completed for the position – this can increase turnaround time. Here are some ways you can reduce your turnaround time for verifications.
What Are Employment and Education Verifications?
Employment verifications are the process of confirming the work history that is provided on your candidates résumés. This process verifies past and current employers, it may also include employment dates and positions held. Employment verifications can help the hiring process by ensuring the candidate has the necessary experience to do the job well. It can also show if the candidate is being honest in the early stages of the hiring process. The average turnaround time for employment verifications is 3-5 business days.
Education verifications confirm the degrees, diplomas, or certificates of your candidate. Other dates that are typically verified include attendance, graduation, and fields of study. Education verifications can be an essential factor in the hiring process. It can confirm that the candidate has a strong academic background and ensure they have the knowledge and skills they claim to acquire. The average turnaround time for education verifications is 3-5 business days.
The Impact Covid-19 Has Had On These Verification Services
Covid-19 has impacted background screening, but we are seeing a return to normal turnaround times. The effects on verifications, however, have been impacted due to personnel shortages and backlogs of requests.
EY Forensic and Integrity Services conducted a survey regarding the effects Covid-19 had on employee background checks in India. This survey showed:
- 68% of organizations faced challenges in completing background checks during the Covid-19 lockdown
- 36% of organizations were unable to complete the checks
Verification Process
Employment:
- Contact the previous employer.
- Contact a third party source such as The Work Number® .
- Results reported back contain all present and past employment within seven years
- Compare results to the work experiences reported by your job candidate
Education:
- A request is sent to the candidate to provide:
- Their name at the time their degree/diploma was earned
- The name of the institution attended
- The city/state of the institution
- The type of degree and studied
- The month/year the degree was earned
- When the accuracy of this information is confirmed, it is then requested for verification records from the National Student Clearinghouse (“NSC”)
- If the record is not found in this database, there are other methods for confirming the information
Orange Tree makes three valid attempts for employment verifications and four valid attempts for education verifications over three days. “Valid attempts” include contacting a confirmed resource. This contact is with an authorized connection in the registrar’s office or a similar department.
How To Speed Up The Process
The average verification process for employment and education can be delayed for several factors, some of which are out of the hands of background screening providers. One way you can help speed up the verification process is by requesting documentation from the candidate.
Examples Of Employment Documentation
- W2 form
- Paystub
- I-9 form
- Tax forms
- Bank statements
- Proof of employment offer letter
Examples Of Education Documentation
- Valid degree
- Transcripts
- Diploma
Orange Tree provides a mechanism for enabling the candidate to easily upload a copy of their credentials via our CandidateConnect® portal; the client verifies that it meets their requirements.
Benefits Of Adding Documentation To Your Verification Process
Adding documentation to your verification process can reduce your turnaround time by .5 to 1 business day. Using documentation in your verification process can also reduce costs if you are only requesting documentation.
Many employers and schools outsource their verification to third-party services such as National Student Clearinghouse (NSC) and Worknumber®. Using these third-party services, you are then charged fees subject to change and continue to rise. Asking candidates for documentation would eliminate these fees.
Orange Tree Offers Two Processes To Obtain Documentation
Orange Tree requests documentation from the candidate and tries to obtain verification using the standard method. Whichever process comes back first (documentation or using our standard method) – we will provide it to the employer and close out the services. Doing this reduces turnaround time by .5 business days.
We are requesting documentation only from the candidate and providing it to the client. Doing this reduces turnaround time by one business day.
Schedule a call to learn how Orange Tree can help provide reliable information for your verification process.
