Pre-employment screening – be prepared

An ever increasing number of organisations carry out pre-employment screening on new hires, whether on a permanent or contract basis. Although it is primarily firms from the financial services sector that insist on this, we are seeing an increasing number of commercial clients attaching greater importance to screening new recruits and asking them for specific documentation before allowing them to start their role.
As the majority require full pre-employment screening to be completed prior to start date, it can lead to a delay between the job offer and starting the role of up to two weeks. To avoid this, we always recommend that job seekers pre-empt all possible requirements as much as possible.
To give an example of the documentation that can be prepared beforehand, common requirements may include (but are not limited to):

• Proof of right to work
• Proof of address (up to five years)
• UK and international credit checks (up to six years)
• Employment and education references (up to five years)
• Proof of activity for gaps in employment (six weeks or more)
• UK and international criminal record check

It is important to bear in mind that no two employers are the same and we see variety in terms of what different clients look for. We find successful applicants for roles will usually be informed of exact requirements at the time of hire – if not before – of what documentation will be required from them.

However, those that seek to address the above issues before they are asked are most likely to start their chosen job the quickest.
Robert Walters recruits professionals into financial services firms and commercial organisations of varying sizes on both a contract and permanent basis. To find out more, contact Adam on 020 7509 8481 or adam.whitehouse@robertwalters.com