Employment verification

Verifying a candidate’s employment history confirms their work experience, qualifications, and credentials.

Verification process

Employment verification includes the steps below:

1. The candidate provides their employment history.
2. Checkr searches established databases of employment records to verify the candidate-provided information about their employment history. The situations below sometimes happen:
   • If Checkr can't use these databases to verify the candidate's history, Checkr uses public information to contact the employer.
   • If Checkr can't contact the employer using public information, Checkr uses the candidate-provided contact information.
   • If Checkr still can’t contact the previous employer, Checkr asks the candidate to provide one of the documents below per employer:
     • A United States tax form below:
       • W-2
       • 1099
       • Schedule C
     • Pay stub

The link to provide documents expires seven days after Checkr emails it. If you don't want Checkr to review candidates' documents, contact Checkr to disable document collection on your package.

The candidate's report includes notes about Checkr’s attempts to contact previous employers.

If the candidate provides no employment history, the verification has the “Canceled” status by default. To require that candidates provide employment information, contact Checkr.

Discrepancies in the information below may cause employment verifications to have the “Consider” status:

• Start date
• End date
• Position

A circle with an exclamation point indicates which information has discrepancies.

After a verification completes, Checkr can’t accept additional documents. To review information a candidate provides outside the employment verification, contact the candidate directly.

Self-employed candidates

When a candidate reports a period of self-employment, an internal Checkr team manually verifies the employment. Checkr requests a document below to verify self-employment:

• A United States tax form below:
  • 1099
  • Schedule C
• Letter from the client on company letterhead

“Do not contact” option

Candidates can request that Checkr not contact their current employer. A candidate can select “Do not contact” only for their current employer.

When a candidate requests that Checkr not contact their current employer, Checkr searches employment record databases to complete the verification. 

If employment record databases don't verify the candidate's current employer, Checkr asks the candidate to provide a document below:

• A United States tax document below:
  • W-2
  • 1099
  • Schedule C
• Letter from their former HR department on company letterhead
• Pay stub

The document must include the employer's name. Checkr uses these documents only for verification purposes. If the candidate doesn't provide these documents, the verification delays and the candidate has 7 days to submit them.

Ordering

You can select from the employment verification options below. To configure these settings for your account, contact Checkr.

• Out-of-country history: Include international verification.
• Salary: Collect the candidate's salary information.
• Manager contact: Collect the manager's contact information.
• Contract type: Collect the candidate's contract type.
• Employment lookback: Set the amount of employment history to request from the candidate. You can set up to 10 years of history.
• Employment history: Set how many previous positions to request information about from the candidate. Set at least one position.

Consult your legal counsel about your compliance responsibilities under relevant federal, state, and local laws

Employment verification is available as a standalone search.

Lookback periods

You can configure different lookback periods for each package. Even if you configure a lookback period, Checkr doesn't require candidates to provide a specific number of employers. A lookback period only improves the chances that the candidate provides information within that lookback period. If you need information about an exact number of employers, tell your candidates directly.

A candidate meets the verification requirement when they provide an item below:

• The requested number of employers
• Employment history within the lookback period

For example, you might require a seven-year lookback period and three previous positions. A candidate who provides an employment history with one position that lasted 10 years and another candidate who had three positions over four years also meets your requirement.

Salary questions

Some jurisdictions regulate whether an employer can ask about a candidate’s salary history. Because regulations change frequently, Checkr’s default is to not collect salary information from candidates.

Candidate experience

In the Candidate Portal, candidates in the United States enter payroll login information for their current or most recent employer. If the information is correct, we instantly verify the candidate’s employment history. If we can’t find the employer’s information, or if the information is incorrect, the candidate provides their information manually.

Candidates outside the United States, and those who can’t use payroll information, provide their personally identifying information (PII) manually.

The candidate provides the PII below:

• Birth date
• Email address
• Full name
• Phone number
• Social Security number (SSN)

The candidate then reads and acknowledges receipt of applicable forms and authorizations:

• A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)
• Disclosure Regarding Background Investigation
• Authorization for a background check
• Other state and required disclosures as applicable

After the candidate signs the authorization form, Checkr starts the verification. Checkr can’t update or correct candidate-provided information after the verification starts.

If Checkr can’t verify an employer, Checkr asks the candidate to provide a document below:

• A United States tax form below:
  • W-2
  • 1099
  • Schedule C
• Letter from their former HR department on company letterhead
• Pay stub

Checkr doesn't accept W-9 forms as proof of employment.

If you applied for a job and want to know your background check’s status, log in to the Checkr Candidate Portal.