Employment Verification

It is mandatory for employers to obtain permission from candidates before conducting an employment verification that will provide information on the potential employee’s work habits, attitude, and integrity.

Employers are allowed to gather the following information:

• Job start and end dates.
• Titles held.
• Salary.
• Job duties.
• Reason for termination.
• Rehire eligibility.

Although the terms verification of employment, employment verification letter, and proof of employment are sometimes used interchangeably, verification of employment, or VOE, generally refers to an entity such as a lender or government asking for employment information, versus another employer.

An employer may typically disclose a current or former employee's job title, the period of employment, salary amount, responsibilities, job performance, and whether they resigned or were terminated. There are no federal laws restricting what an employer can or cannot disclose, however, state laws may differ. Be sure to check with your state labor department to confirm what information can be released for employment verification.

First off, a surprising number of applicants lie. Second, you'll get a more accurate employment timeline. Finally, in general, it'll give a more solid basis for hiring decisions.

Employers usually request a candidate's work history for the past seven years, although employment background screening can go up to ten years in some states.

Rather than rely on information the candidate supplies, get in contact with the company human resources department directly and ask them who you should talk to that can verify the candidate's employment information. This ensures you're talking to the right person.

There are no official laws that require employers to verify the employment of former employees. However, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission stipulates that it's illegal to refuse to provide information based on race, sex, color, and other non-job-related factors.