LeadingEdition: E-newsletter for Purdue University Supervisors

Do you know who you are hiring?
Don't forget the reference checks!

You’re finished interviewing and are ready to make an offer to a seemingly outstanding applicant. Should you check references, or will that just slow down the process? After all, most employers will only verify dates of employment, right?

Little could be farther from the truth! Checking references before making an offer can actually save time, money, effort, and a lot of embarrassment. Consider Notre Dame’s hiring of George O’Leary, who resigned after it was discovered that he had lied about having a master’s degree in education and playing college football for three years.

If you provide the previous employer with a signed Reference Check Release Form from the applicant, you may be pleasantly surprised how candid past employers may be in providing useful information. It is important to keep in mind that since all applicants must be treated fairly, you will need to conduct reference checks on all strong external and internal applicants you are considering for the position.

Employment experts estimate that 30 percent of all resumes contain false or exaggerated information. Most often, dates are expanded to cover gaps in employment, which may be covering up something more serious than just unemployment. Education is another area that candidates may exaggerate or falsify. If your position requires a specific educational background, you should verify the applicant’s education before you make an offer.

Tips for effectively checking references:

Once you have selected your final candidates, ask each to contact his or her current or previous supervisor(s) to request that the supervisor(s) provide a reference.

Have candidates sign a Reference Check Release Form. Previous employers may require applicant approval before releasing information.

Ask the reference provider if he or she has time to talk or if the provider would like to schedule a specific time to conduct the reference. This gives the person time to move to a private office, if necessary.

Reassure the provider that what he or she says will not dictate whether you hire the individual.

Don’t begin the call by asking “filler questions” about dates of employment and the last title the candidate held. Save those for the very end. Instead, start by asking open-ended questions such as, “What duties did Pat perform?” This gets the provider talking. Consider using the Reference Check Questions sheet.

Ask the provider about the candidate’s strengths and weaknesses.

Describe your vacant position and ask the provider how he or she feels the candidate would fit into the position.

Avoid discussing personal characteristics.

Disregard information about which the provider has no first-hand knowledge or that is unrelated to the applicant’s skills, performance, or qualifications.

ALWAYS check more than one reference.

Listen carefully to the reference provider’s tone.

If a previous employer is unwilling to volunteer information, try asking the employer to rate the candidate on a scale of one to ten with respect to certain qualities. For example, “On a scale of one to ten, how would you rate the employee’s attendance?” Many employers are more willing to respond with this approach. Another approach is to simply ask the employer if he or she would re-hire the individual.

Letters of recommendation

Accepting letters of recommendation without following up on them can be a mistake. Make a phone call to the person who wrote the letter. Ask the same questions you ask of other references, even if the information was provided in the letter. Verify that the person providing the recommendation actually supervised the applicant. In some cases, you may find that the supervisor didn’t even write the letter.

Negligent hiring

Failing to conduct reference checks or to use reasonable care in the employment selection process may lead to a negligent hiring claim. Courts have ruled that companies have a general duty to check criminal records on prospective employees who interface with the public or who could have an opportunity to commit a violent crime in the course of their employment. In addition, damages against employers are being awarded when the employer has been found to be negligent and has failed to perform a reasonable search into an employee’s background prior to hiring. The following case study was cited on the www.hrhero.com website.

A plumbing company in Kansas City hired Wesley Purkey as a repairman, gave him a van, and sent him to a customer’s home. In his application for employment, Purkey denied that he had been convicted of a crime or served time in prison. The company did not verify his references or perform a criminal background check.

The company did not know that Purkey had spent 25 years in prison for violent felonies, including aggravated robbery, burglary, assault, and kidnapping. After being paroled, he worked at six or seven different construction jobs, each for a short time. At least some of his previous employers and references were aware of his criminal background.

Mary Ruth Bales, an 80-year-old widow, called the plumbing company and requested repairs to her kitchen sink, and the company sent Purkey to her home. He collected $90 from Bales to buy plumbing parts and left, using the money to buy crack cocaine. He later returned to Bales’ home, robbed her, and beat her to death with a claw hammer.

Bales’ family sued the plumbing company, claiming it violated a duty to evaluate Purkey’s safety and fitness for employment before sending him into customers’ homes. The claim was settled for $500,000.

This, of course, is an extreme case of negligent hiring, but it does help stress the importance of reference checks. More than likely, failing to check references will not result in murder, but picking up the phone to talk to a few references seems like cheap insurance.

- Stephanie Orem and Barb Doppelfeld,
Employment Recruiters

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