It has recently been reported that a Melbourne man is about to be sentenced for falsifying accounting documents and obtaining property by deception. The 313 charges laid against the man related to his employment at an electrical store. The man had forged four of his character references to secure the employment.
It has recently been reported that a Melbourne man is about to be sentenced for falsifying accounting documents and obtaining property by deception. The 313 charges laid against the man related to his employment at an electrical store. The man had forged four of his character references to secure the employment. It was discovered at the hearing that one of the referees had never heard of the man and the others denied providing the man with a reference.
In our blog article A Policy of Truth: Why Employers Should Carry Out Pre – Employment Checks we discussed the steps an employer can take to minimise the risk of hiring a dishonest candidate. In addition to these tips, employers are reminded to be vigilant – especially when speaking to an applicant’s referees and accepting statements of service.
A potential employer could:
- call the company and confirm that the applicant or the referee works/worked there – go through the switchboard rather than calling a mobile phone;
- when trying to verify the referee’s title, find out what their working relationship with the applicant is/was;
- if you have not heard of the company the applicant claims to have worked for then you could do an internet search to see if it is a real company;
- if it is a past employer, and the employee provided a Statement of Service, call the business and confirm the contents of the statement of service;
- check to see whether the Statement of Service matches the resume provided (and possibly their LinkedIn profile);
- be wary of online services that provide fake references and recommendation letters.
Our August 2016 Employment E-Update discusses what an employer can do if they discover that an employee has provided fraudulent information to secure their job. To subscribe to our monthly e-updates click here.
Information provided in this blog is not legal advice and should not be relied upon as such. Workplace Law does not accept liability for any loss or damage arising from reliance on the content of this blog, or from links on this website to any external website. Where applicable, liability is limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation.
