Employment Verification

This article will help you:

• Understand the Employment Verification process
• Understand available Employment Verification options
• Understand your candidate's experience

This article is intended for the following user roles: admin, adjudicator, user

Verification Process

Verifying past employment history validates a person’s work experience. It can also be useful in identifying gaps in the candidate’s employment history.

During the Checkr-Hosted Apply flow, candidates are asked to provide their employment history. They are given the opportunity to request that their current employer NOT be contacted. When this option is selected, Checkr will prompt them to upload a W-2, 1099, or pay stub to provide proof of  employment. Uploaded documents must reflect the employer name and will only be used for verification purposes.

When a candidate selects "do not contact", Checkr will use the documents submitted by the candidate to complete the employment verification, and no search will be launched. The Employment Verification request will instead be sent to an internal Checkr team to complete the verification using only the documents that have been uploaded by the candidate. If the candidate does not upload their supporting documents during the Checkr-Hosted Apply Flow, an exception will be triggered immediately after the background check is initiated, asking the candidate to submit their documents. Candidates will have 7 days to upload their supporting documents to fulfill the request of the exception.

Please note: Checkr is unable to accept documents after a verification is complete. Customers must contact their candidate directly if they wish to review any supplemental information provided outside of the Checkr Employment Verification.

Checkr will first check established databases that maintain employment records for millions of Americans to attempt to verify the information a candidate provides about their employment history.

If employment cannot be verified using this database information, a researcher will contact the employer directly, using the information provided by the candidate or discovered through our research.

Notes are made on each of these attempts, and are available in the candidate's Report. 

By default, Employment Verifications will return Clear if no employment history is provided. This can be overridden by a Package setting to require employment history. Work with your Checkr Customer Success Manager to require candidates to submit previous employment information for verification.

Any significant discrepancies in start date, end dates, and position (titles) will lead to a Consider status for employment verification. You'll see a "warning" icon ( ) appear next to the information that contains a discrepancy.

If previous employers cannot be verified, Checkr will generate an exception, and request that the candidate upload a W2, a letter from their former HR department on company letterhead, or an old pay stub to the Candidate Portal.

After the exception is issued, your candidate will have 7 days to provide the requested documentation. If they do not upload this documentation within the 7 day window, the report will expire and a new report must be generated, and a new invitation issued to your candidate.

Available Employment Verification options

The following Employment Verification setting options are available. Please work with your Checkr Customer Success Manager to configure these settings for your account.

• Out-of-country history: Enables international verification.
• Salary: Collects salary information.
• Manager contact: Collects manager contact information.
• Contract type: Collects contract type.
• Employment lookback: Defines the number of years of employment history requested from your candidates (1-10 years).
• Employment history: Defines the number of positions requested from your candidates (1-unlimited positions).

Customers may configure different lookback periods per package.

Checkr will consider the verification to have been fulfilled when either the defined employment lookback period or the requested employment history has been provided. For example, if an verification requests a 7 year lookback period and 3 positions for employment history, the verification will be fulfilled if the candidate provides either one position which lasted 10 years, or 3 positions which date back only 4 years.

Many jurisdictions have banned employers from inquiring about a candidate's salary history. Checkr helps you comply with these laws by not asking for salary information when the candidate has entered a zip code from a major state or city that bans salary history information. However, because this regulatory landscape changes frequently, our default option is not to collect salary information from candidates.

Candidate Experience

Employment Verifications may be run as a standalone Check.

Candidates will be asked to provide their employment history, including job title, manager, and location, for a client-defined number of years and previous employers. An example of the form is displayed as follows. 

They will then be presented and asked to acknowledge receipt of applicable forms and notifications, including Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and an Acknowledgement and Authorization for Background Check.

After the candidate consents, Checkr will initiate the verification process.

If previous employers cannot be verified, candidates may also be asked to provide a W2, a letter from their former HR department on company letterhead, or an old pay stub.

If you've applied for a job and are looking for more information on your background check’s status or progress, please log into the Checkr Candidate Portal.