TRIAD Personnel Services, Inc.

Employer Tips

Truth and Lies
More firms check resumes as more job seekers cheat
By Jim Jordan

Lexington Herald-Leader
Lying is a growth industry. More people are lying on their resumes, so more employers are checking resumes, so more resume-checking services are popping up around the country. There is a malaise, a general condition of dishonesty creeping through the country," said Edward C. Andler, author of The Complete Reference Checking Handbook, published by Amacom Books. "We also have a situation where honest people are becoming dishonest to keep up with the dishonest people," he said. Resume distortion has increased 24 percent since 1979, according to surveys by Andler's St. Louis firm, Certified Reference Checking Company. About 36 percent of all resumes contain some untruth, although the lies are minor in most cases. The most common distortion involves education, Andler and other experts said. Some job seekers confer college degrees on themselves. Others claim to have earned scholastic honors or to have graduated from a more prestigious university. Still others reverse minor and major areas of concentration. Additional common distortions include:

Some liars get caught, but Andler and other professionals say many don't. Out of every five people hired, about three have had their resumes checked. "It doesn't give people a lot of incentive to clean up their resumes, now does it?" observed Steven Gall, president of Gall & Gall, a reference checking firm in Dayton, Ohio.

But Gall said employers have big incentives to make sure they check out everyone they hire. He cites settlements and court awards ranging from $25,000 to $4.75 million that went to victims of crimes committed by employees even at the level of part-time maintenance workers-who were hired without reference checks. In some cases, he said the manager who makes a bad hire can be sued or fired or put on the career track to nowhere. "It amazes me that people don't think it's necessary to check people out," Gall said. "The liability is huge."

Even if there are no serious repercussions, a company that makes bad hires can count on more employee turnover and less efficiency, he said. "The main point is to get who you think you are getting," Andler said. "If you don't, it can really play havoc with a company." In his book, Andler lists 48 reference-checking firms around the country. Most are relatively new.

Dick Blanchard, president of the CM Management Services consulting firm in Lexington, said employers are doing more checking than ever. Competition for good employees is intense due to low unemployment and shortages of highly skilled job seekers, Blanchard said. In this environment, mistakes can easily be made. In many cases, employers pick the top candidate or maybe the top two or three-and then fax their resumes and job applications to out-of-town firms to do the checking. "Reference checking is a thorn in your side," Blanchard said. "It's easy to say 'I don't have time for it,' and let it slide, but it's very important "It can be very expensive to hire the wrong person," he added.

Reference checking firms often charge by the hour. The total cost depends on how many jobs the candidate has had and in how many locations. Companies can expect to pay an hourly rate of $75 to $90 and a total bill of $150 to $300 per resume, although more extensive checking will be needed for employees and executives who handle cash, bill paying and budgeting. Background checks will include both criminal and credit checks going back at least seven years in addition to calls to references and others who know the candidate.

Gall said employers should have candidates complete an extensive job application in addition to a resume. The application should require at least five character references, most candidates expect to be asked for only three. The last two references are often the most informative.

The Society for Human Resource Management has proposed model legislation that has been adopted by 31 states to exempt employers from liability as long as they provide accurate and unbiased information to checkers. "The basic purpose is to allow employers to give and get more honest references instead of the name, rank and serial number policies we see at a lot of companies," said Sharon Leonard of the society.

As part of our service to our clients, TRIAD Personnel checks references on our applicant clients we represent to your organization. We verify education/degrees, certifications, employment history and technical references. Written reports are provided for your records. Criminal Background investigations and Social Security Number Verification will be performed upon request at no extra cost for these additional services. Drug Tests and Credit References are not performed by our firm.