Employment Verification Laws: The Basics

There are many aspects to professional background check services, but employment verification laws are of the most important for companies looking to hire as well as employees, past or present, who are looking for a new job or a new residence. In most of these situations, there is no legal requirement to answer employment verification requests. It is important to note, however, that there are a few key situations where employers must respond. To help everyone understand what they should do with a request, here are the basics of employment verification laws.

As the name implies, employment verification is a request to confirm the past or current employment of an individual. This request is made to the employer to confirm if an individual worked at a company as they claim. At a quick glance, this might seem like an odd thing to require. However, it is very important for a company to do whenever they hire a new employee. It is the only way to tell if an employee is telling the truth. It can also be used by landlords and money lenders to confirm someone’s ability to pay what they owe.

What They Require

An employee verification request does follow a standard format with requests for basic information, such as dates of employment and job titles. However, this does not mean you can give all this information. Be careful, as every state has its own employment verification laws limiting what information you can give on these requests. It is best to answer these requests quickly to help everyone get the information they need.

Legality

The hardest part of a request is understanding the laws regarding employment verification. For instance, do you have to respond to employment verification requests? Generally, you are not legally responsible to answer an employee verification request unless it is issued by a federal group. However, most employers do answer these requests as often as possible, even when not legally required. The most important thing is to only give the information you can legally give. You must navigate your state’s laws to ensure you do not break any rules. You can always avoid this problem by using a third-party verification company that knows what to ask and is familiar with the laws surrounding the situation.

These are just the basics of employment verification requirements. Knowing just this information will not fully tell you how to navigate every request. However, you should have an understanding of your options and what you can do.