INCONSISTENT representation of job seekers’ backgrounds is rampant within the industrial, public sector and banking/finance industries, according to recent research
INCONSISTENT representation of job seekers’ backgrounds is rampant within the industrial, public sector and banking/finance industries, according to recent research.
Conducted by Australian Background, the survey found that 21 per cent of the 1,000 job candidates screened for various positions – both management and non-management – had deceived their future employer to get the job.
Industrial organisations, including manufacturing, building and construction were hardest hit with 41 per cent, followed by the public sector at 32 per cent and banking and finance at 19 per cent.
“Employers are well aware that job seekers fabricate and sensationalise their life and career stories to fit the job description – inconsistent dates of employment, reasons for leaving and educational qualifications are the main offences,” said Sally Mooney, director of Australian Background.
“What employers don’t know is that while the person they’re about to hire may look good on paper, they have a history of committing fraud.”
The survey found that men between the ages of 21 to 30 lie more often than women to get the job, however, as both genders mature the number of discrepancies decline.
Of all the candidates surveyed, almost one in twenty had a criminal conviction, with men committing four times as many crimes as women. Of all those with criminal convictions, 60 per cent did not confess to them when asked.
Fifty-six per cent of adverse records were traffic related, 21 per cent were due to theft, fraud and embezzlement and 13 per cent were for possession of prohibited goods, including drugs and firearms. Ten per cent were for disorderly behaviour and acts of violence.
“In some cases the convictions are deemed minor, such as traffic offences, yet people still don’t think these are criminal offences, when they are. In more extreme cases they fear a criminal record will jeopardise their chances of getting the job,” Mooney said.
The banking and finance industry and public sectors were the main targets for receiving false or misleading employment histories.
