Comprehensive checks for corporate employees. No verification for School staff. Justified?

Lately, more and more start-ups have realized the importance and merits of checking up on employees and staff. Background verification has emerged as a prerequisite for every new company or institution that is being set up, for a number of reasons. However, studies show that the degree of implementation is not uniform.

What is background verification?

A background verification is a comprehensive check of a person or group’s financial, criminal and social history. The results of the check are used by potential employers as an indicator of the level of a candidate’s character and his or her fitness for the position. This form of pre-employment screening is especially useful in the case of jobs or positions that require a high level of trust in the candidate.

Why the need?

Security is a vital aspect of any organization, and with more and more setups getting bogged down by frauds caused by employees with faked or fluffed credentials who slipped by the previously non-existent radar, they are turning to background verification to ensure that no such discrepancies occur. Over the past five years, records collated from different businesses and institutions show that approximately a fifth of candidates for employment have discrepancies in the reported credentials and the official reports from the organization awarding the credential. The practice of playing around with details like age or grades have been prevalent for many decades now, but the number is now on the decrease as more and more people are becoming aware of background verification.

The actuality of background verification

The truth of background verification, however, is not as rosy. Corporate organizations have made it mandatory for all new candidates to be subjected to a detailed background check, including both basics like education records and things like criminal records both nationally and abroad. All applicants for positions are notified of this beforehand in their offer letter, and are accepted only if they pass the verification process.

The same, however, cannot be said for the education sector in the country. Most schools have no such mechanism in place, and those that do ignore crucial aspects of the background verification process, such as criminal records check. This is potentially harmful, as students of these schools could not only be signed up for substandard education, but also be at risk of being abused physically or mentally. The discrepancy rates for higher education are lower, as these typically employ professionals who have been through extensive training in their specific field.

That said, it is unfair that employees across different sectors are not treated equally when it comes to a matter of the organization’s security – which is same regardless of the type of organization. Why, then, should employees not be treated in the same manner as far as background checks are concerned? This is compulsory for all employees in the leading countries of the west, and perhaps it is time to take a leaf out of their book and a step forward in our own development and safety.