Employment screening is the process of verifying the credentials of an applicant or employee. The aim is to prevent non-compliance and poor hiring choices, which could inflict financial, reputational, and legal damage to an organisation.
Pre-Employment Screening
Pre-employment screening verifies the identity, criminal record, and legal right to work of a candidate, amongst other checks that may be required for the role and/or industry. As the name suggests, pre-employment screening is undertaken before a candidate is hired.
There are ten essential employment background checks all employers must consider within their pre-employment screening process, including:
- Right to Work Checks
- Criminal Record Checks (DBS Checks)
- Employment References
- Educational References
- Credit Check
- DVLA Check
- Social Media Screening
- Medical Checks
- International Sanctions
- UK Sanctions Checks
Some of these checks are required by law in all sectors (such as a right to work check), whilst others are demanded within certain sectors (e.g., enhanced DBS check in education and care work).
Other checks, such as credit checks and DVLA checks, are commonplace in sectors such as finance and transport respectively. However, companies outside of these sectors
The key to success is to ensure the checks you implement are both proportionate to the role and do not discriminate. For example, if a candidate has a criminal record, does the conviction matter? Will hiring that candidate impact your business negatively?
You can find our full guide on pre-employment screening here.
Post-Employment Screening
Post-employment screening verifies certain credentials of a candidate during and after their employment with an organisation. It based on the premise that things change in an employee’s life, which may affect their duties, peers, and organisation.
In certain sectors, regular employee background checks are required to ensure compliance and prevent legal ramifications.
For example, the transport sector demands annual DVLA checks on drivers to ensure they have not been disqualified nor involved in any driving-related offences. Another example is within the healthcare sector, where enhanced DBS checks are performed on employees annually (sometimes more regularly).
In sectors where certain checks are not mandatory, it is up to the employer and HR leader how often to perform regular checks. Whilst it is recommended to perform checks annually, it may be more beneficial to perform these checks more regularly (e.g., every six months).
After An Employee Has Left
Part of the overall process requires an exit procedure for employees who leave an organisation.
The following is the best practice for any company (as a minimum)
- Inform the employee how their data will be processed after they leave the company (post-employment data processing)
- Confirm correspondence details (e.g., postal address and email address) are correct to send documents, such as a P45
- Ensure the former employee has access revoked to your organisation’s IT infrastructure (e.g., login details, laptop)
- Inform the former employee that their details must be kept on file after they leave and the reasons why (e.g., sector compliance, tax/HMRC auditing)
Consent To Process Data
It is required under GDPR laws that you must obtain consent from the candidate/employee (data subject) before processing any personal data for the purpose of screening.
Software for Employment Screening
It is important to implement a system that ensures your employment screening process is, not only compliant, but efficient and user-friendly.
If there is scope to implement such a system, then you should consider Employment Check Pro.
Employment Check Pro is a secure, fast, and robust platform that works alongside the requirements of your industry. Its easy to use and has helped all our clients manage all elements of the screening and recruitment process.
It is designed for all sectors, including aviation, education, healthcare, recruitment, and more.
And not only is it secure, but it is also fast and fully GDPR-compliant.
Learn more about Pro here or complete the contact form below to book a demo.