Business References
By Randall Barker, Vice President of Human Resources - A Plus Benefits
Recent studies show that close to 50 percent of resumes contain a lie (that may be on the low side). The majority of these lies are in reference to a job candidate’s past job experience along with distortions about educational accomplishments. This can be a huge problem as an employer may hire somebody thinking they’re getting someone with certain experience, skills, and attributes, only to be disappointed when they find that they’ve been deceived. Typically once a company discovers the lie it has spent a lot of time, money and resources on the employee and is stuck with the difficult decision of whether or not to take the loss by terminating the employee and starting over again.
It’s situations like this that make reference checks critical. One common misconception with reference checks is the idea that a business can’t provide information about a past employee for fear of being sued. That’s a myth. In Utah there is a law called the Reference Immunity Law (Utah Code Ann §34-42-1 - enacted 1995) that protects employers as long as the person providing the information is providing factual information or information that they believe to be the truth.
However, it’s unfortunate that some managers or HR professionals don’t know the rules and regulations associated with providing a reference. One of the things we suggest clients do to help calm the fears of not being able to get the whole truth when a job candidate comes in for an interview is require them to sign a release that authorizes a background check and releases past employers to discuss the applicant’s past employment. This creates some interesting scenarios. Either the candidate will sign the form or they’ll refuse to sign it and disappear never to be heard from again. If they disappear you know they had something to hide. If they sign it you stand a much better chance of getting an honest reference and being able to find the best qualified candidate. However, even when the applicant signs the release don’t assume that there is nothing to hide or that the resume is telling the whole truth. Always follow up and contact the applicant’s former employer.
In some cases, even with this authorization some managers or HR people are hesitant to say anything other than to confirm that the person did work for them and provide the dates of the former employee’s employment. In these cases a simple follow up question, “Would you rehire this person?” will speak volumes about a candidate’s work history. If the answer is no, it is usually safe to assume that the reference would come back negative and that there were issues that make the manager or HR professional nervous about giving specific details.
Hiring an employee is a major investment for a business and reference checks are one of the best ways to ensure that your business is making a solid investment.
About the Author
Randall Barker is Vice President of Human Resources at A Plus Benefits and has been with the company for over 14 years. He has been involved in human resources for over 20 years and is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources (SPHR) and Certified Employment Law Specialist (CELS). He received his master’s degree from the University of Phoenix and has taught Human Resource classes at a local college. He has extensive experience with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) and has successfully managed more than 80 discrimination claims for A Plus Benefits clients during the past 14 years in Utah, Nevada, Wyoming, and Colorado.
The content of this blog reflects the views and opinions of the author, and not necessarily those of Utah Business.
Tags: HR, Human Resources, Reference Immunity Law, references