All posts in Employment

Top 3 Reasons For Fail Background Check

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Finding a job in this economy can be a daunting and difficult task. In a competitive job market employers become more stringent and will disqualify applicants that provide incorrect or incomplete information about themselves over the past 10 years. When employers find discrepancies between the information you provided and what they find out in your background check report, they assume that you are either disorganized, less-than-truthful, or just plain dishonest. Whatever the case, the result is that you dont receive a job offer. Thats why you must secure your place among the top candidates by making sure you will pass your pre-employment background check.

As a private detective who specializes in background investigations, I want to share with you what I have learned over the past 15 years in conducting tens of thousands of background checks for small, medium, large and fortune 500 companies. Even though I charge $150 an hour for consulting services, I am providing my expert advice to you free of charge because I want you to succeed. If I can help even just a few people find a job and secure their familys future, I will feel like I am doing my part to help get our countrys economy back on track.

So lets jump right in to what you came here to for: the top 3 reasons why applicants fail their background check.

REASON #1: FAILURE TO DISCLOSE A CRIMINAL RECORD

You know that little question on every job application with a checkbox next to it that says something like Have you ever been convicted of a crime? Well you need to know the correct answer to this question before you check the box. So let me clarify what this question means to employers: what they really want to know is if you are honest and trustworthy. They can and will find out if you have a criminal record when they conduct the background check, no matter how you answer. So if you say no, and you have a criminal conviction on your record, what you are really demonstrating is that you are not honest and cannot be trusted.

If you do have a criminal conviction and you answer yes to the question, you are giving yourself the best possible chance of getting a job offer by being honest and straightforward. Provide accurate details about the charge, the date, and the county of conviction. When the background check comes back, the employer will see that you have given all of the complete and accurate details up front. This shows you are being open and honest, and that you are taking responsibility for what you did and moving on with your life. You would be surprised to know how often employers are willing to overlook criminal records with applicants that have good solid experience or a winning personality. You can increase your chances of this happening by applying for positions where your conviction is unrelated to the duties of the job you are applying for. For instance, if you were convicted of a DUI, I wouldnt apply for a driving position, or if you were convicted of theft I wouldnt apply for a cash handling position.

REASON #2: INACCURATE OR INCOMPLETE WORK HISTORY

Employers want to see accurate and complete information concerning your former employers. The reason for this is again a matter of principal. The employers perspective is that they want honest and organized employees, and if you dont remember the details of your job experience, then why are you listing it on your resume or application? And they do have a point. If you are a very organized person, you probably already have a document prepared with all of the details concerning all of the jobs you have held over the past 10 years. For the rest of us, gathering up all of this information is a near-impossible task, especially if you have job-hopped quite a bit. So whats the next best thing to having a master document with the details of all your previous work experience? Have a professional background screener compile one for you. That way when you fill out an application you can be confident that you will have the exact same information in front of you as the employer will receive after completing your background check.

The information that you need to compile before filling out a job application consists of the information that is asked on most application forms, such as the ex-employers name, address and telephone number, exact dates of employment, your job title per the employer, (not the one you were in theory or the one you thought you deserved) your beginning and ending pay rates, and your reason for leaving as recorded by the employer. Notice the common theme here is that your information should match exactly the information that your ex-employer is going to release when asked. This strategy pays dividends many times over, and will help you to avoid failing a background check for providing inaccurate or incomplete work history information.

REASON #3:FICTITIOUS, EXAGGERATED OR INACCURATE EDUCATION CLAIMS

Employers base pay scales, individual pay rates, job descriptions and job requirements in part on educational qualifications. Even though many job positions require a certain level of education only as a minimum requirement, employers take offense when an applicant misrepresents or overstates their education, because it violates their sense of fair play. If you dont meet the minimum requirements, then you shouldnt be applying for the position. Employers also see this as an economic issue; if they are going to be paying you a certain wage based in part on educational credentials you dont actually have, then they are paying for something that they never received. No company is this economy wants to feel like they are being defrauded.

That is why it is so important to be very specific in stating your education credentials. Dont say you graduated if you didnt, even if you were just one credit hour short. If you attended a trade school for 8 months, dont say you were there for a year. If you graduated with a 2.5 grade average, dont say you had a 3.0. If you have a GED, say so, but dont say that you graduated high school; its not the same. If you never attended college, dont say that you attended a university that burned down in 1980. Professional investigators like myself, who do background checks for a living will see right through it, and relay that to our client who requested the background check.

Luckily, you can easily obtain a copy of your background check online to uncover what a potential employer will find before they find it. Instead of filling out an application wondering if you remembered to write down everything correctly, you can just look at your own master document compiled by a professional background screening firm.

A word to the wise: there are thousands of websites that sell instant background checks online. These are not professional background screening firms that conduct investigations for large employers. Most of them are just information brokers that sell instant data that has been circulating around the web for years. Make sure that you select a professional background screening firm or private detective agency that does on-request delayed searches, which are researched once you place your order and not instant results.

The bottom line is that in order to be safe, you need to know exactly what a prospective employer is going to find on your background check report. A professional background screening firm that deals with the public can cut out all the work of obtaining the background information about you, and organize it into a report that you can receive in your email box. Instead of having to go to city hall, the courthouse, your high school and other places that hold this information, you can get it all online by ordering a pre-employment background check on yourself.

Good luck and success on your job hunt!

Most Common Clauses In An Employment Contract And Agreement

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Employment contracts and agreements defines the terms and conditions of the working relationship between an employer and an employee.

The contract shows the duties and responsibilities of the employer to the employee and vice versa.

Although each company has its own template, an employment contract usually contains the following clauses:

Parties Involved

This will specify that the agreement is between the employer and the employee.

Position and Duties

The employment agreement should also specify the title of the position that the employee will be holding, together with the specific duties that the employee will perform as set out by the job description that will be attached to the agreement.

Place of Work

This refers to the location where the employee will be tasked to perform his/her duties.

Working Hours

This refers to the required number of hours the employee must meet.

The employment contract should specify the number of hours the employee must work per week and the number of days in a week.

It should also specify the time that his/her job starts and finishes.

Pay

In this part of the employment contract, the employer can specify the equivalent annual salary that the employee will receive.

The contract should also specify the following:

The period that will be covered for each pay day
The day the payment will be made
The method of which the payment will be given

Public Holidays

This part of the employment agreement specifies that the employee is entitled to be paid for the time worked during a public holiday.

Conflict Resolutions

This part of the employment agreement can specify the process and policies that apply in resolving possible conflicts in the future.

This could include the grievance processes that can be used by the employee to report any practices or policies that they feel are unfair or unjust.

This clause may also include the preferred alternative dispute resolution (ADR) process to resolve employment disputes.

The most common type of ADR process is arbitration because it is much more similar to a court proceeding compared to other ADR forms.

Other Clauses

The employer may also include other clauses that aim to protect the operations and the interests of the company.
Some of them are:

Non-compete clause This prevents an employee from accepting employment from a competitor or start their own venture that will compete with your own company.
Non-solicitation clause This clause prevents your employee from soliciting your clients, customers or suppliers.
Non-disclosure clause This prevents an employee from divulging non-public or proprietary information. The contract should stipulate what defines confidential information.
Anti-raiding clause This prevents former employees from soliciting current employees to leave their employment.
Anti-disparagement clause This prevents employees from making statements that opposes the interest of the company.

Employers are advised to seek help from an expert employment law attorney to make sure that all important areas are covered and that no existing laws are being undermined.

Where Can You Apply For Employment For Retirees

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Do you want to find employment for retirees? Has your income been reduced by the hits on the staggering economy?

Has the threat on Social Security and its future solvency caused you some sleepless nights? Whatever the motivation behind your decision to do so, you have been placed in an interesting position.

Are you up to the challenge?

During the years you spent working for your previous employer, or employers, can you recall all the times you day dreamed about doing some other kind of work than what you were doing at the time?

Own up to it! We all experienced these flights of fancy.

But you quickly dismissed those thoughts, didn’t you? You chased them away as futile things. Well, now is the time to dust off those ideas and take a hard look at them.

The modern day labor market is a vast, varied and fertile ground for anyone up to tilling the soil and planting new kinds of seeds.

This is not pie in the sky stuff! It is cold, hard reality.

The latest scientific studies have proven that older brains, like we seniors possess, are not empty chalk boards wiped clean of ideas.

The results of these studies solidly indicate that the mental capabilities of seniors have actually expanded in capacity.

What does this mean? It means my friend, that you are capable of new ideas, strategies and acquiring and expanding brand new skills and abilities.

Let me pose the question once more. Are you up to the challenge of plunging into the employment market in search of unfilled job ideas from your past?

Because if your answer is a resounding yes, then there is a sea of opportunities awaiting you.

In order to function, and thrive in the job market today, versatility is necessary. It is not only helpful, it is vital.

Employment for retirees has led to some interesting avenues of jobs for senior citizens.

A retired police officer is designing and building backyard tropical gardens and habitats for homeowners.

A retired criminal lawyer, a woman, is working in a bridal shop and arranging wedding gatherings for brides.

A retired army colonel is rebuilding old, classic automobiles for customers of an auto body shop.

A retired high school teacher, a man who gets around in a wheel chair, works as an instructor of physical fitness classes in a large weight training business.

What do these retirees teach us. The sky is the limit. Just because you are older in years does not mean that new things are beyond your grasp.

Look out over the labor market and spend some time picking out the types of work that interest you.

If you want to try your hand at a job that differs from what you have done in the past, do it. Remember, you do not have to go after a full time job if you want to just work part time.

Employment for retirees is a new and novel idea to some employers. They may have never even thought about the concept.

But if you approach them and demonstrate how it will actually benefit their business, you just might find yourself on the payroll for the effort.

Challenge yourself and write something new on your mental blackboard!

Non-bank Lenders Offer $10k Special To Bad Credit Borrowers

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Folks with less than sterling credit, and many with good credit, are finding it hard to get an unsecured loan, especially from traditional lenders such as brick and mortar banks and credit unions. Those with poor credit will find that getting approval for a personal loan from a non-bank lender is far greater than getting one from a traditional lender

Also, traditional lenders are operating under a self-imposed credit crunch and have tightened their underwriting criteria, reduced loan amounts, and limited new lending. Most will not even consider a loan application that does not show a sterling credit history. But, that is why non-bank lenders exist and they can offer a wide array of lending programs with no credit check and for amounts up to $10,000. These loans require no collateral and qualifications are relatively easy to meet.

Employment Tenure and Salary

Most any lender, whether traditional or non-bank, needs to establish some minimal guidelines to increase the possibility of repayment. Usually that begins with having a steady job with an income that shows a good debt-to-income ratio. Lenders like to see at least 90 days on the job with the same company. Some may require six months. Anyway, the longer you have been employed at one place, the better. Lenders consider steady employment to be a sign of stability.

Direct Deposit Bank Account

To be seriously considered for a personal loan from a non-bank lender you should have a valid direct-deposit bank account. A checking account would furnish you with the minimum requirement. However, if you also had a savings or money market account, your credibility would be greatly increased in the eyes of the lender. Usually a lender likes to see three months worth of bank statements to approve your loan. Hopefully it will be pretty clear of serious red marks such as NSF checks, excessive overdrafts, and similar bad marks.

Who Are You and Where Do You Live?

Many non-bank lenders operate online. You may never even see each other in the process of application. Many of them can check your credentials using online resources. But if they cannot, they will ask you to fax or send a scan of a bona fide picture ID. They may also require a utility bill as proof of residence. Some lenders may require other documents. Usually, the greater the amount you have requested, the more documentation you may be asked to supply.

Shopping for the Best Lender

Your credit score, your income, your residency all play a role in the approval process and will influence your approval. Understand that some lenders will approve your application while another may reject it. Do not be discouraged. Sometimes a lender just might be in a bad mood. They all have different policies and different approval thresholds.

Anyhow, make multiple applications and you will get multiple approvals, thus allowing you to choose the best rates and terms. The internet has made it extremely facile to apply and get approved for a loan without spending too much time or energy. Approval is quick and you can usually have money in your account within 24 hours.

Greek Speaking Jobs In London

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For this reason, those seeking a Greek speaking job in London or anywhere in the United Kingdom should dig deeper than the sensationalist tabloids that promote bad economic data while failing to focus on the real positive developments going on through Europe. In London and in the United Kingdom at large, the job market — while fragile — remains as open as it ever was, and is a strong option for those considering a Greek language job.

Famously Diverse Population Needs People from All Corners

London is an exceedingly diverse place to live and work, and its community of Greek citizens is as large as anyone could find outside Greece itself. And that presents a number of big career opportunities for those looking for Greek speaking jobs. There is, first and foremost, a burgeoning small business market in the UK which was not slowed down even a tick since the economic downturn.

Recently business-friendly policies and practises make it possible for Greek jobs to migrate northward toward London, where individuals and families routinely open their own retails stores, restaurants, and other operations in Greek neighbourhoods throughout the city as well as the traditionally more diverse areas in Greater London.

Furthermore, Greek jobs exist throughout the United Kingdom for those who speak both languages fluently. Unrest in Greece, while likely a fleeting phenomenon, has pushed many to reconsider their living arrangements and take up residence in the United Kingdom — generally in London, but in many other areas as well. For that reason, services like translation and transition for new arrivals is in constant demand both with government and private sector employers. It’s a great way to obtain a job and immediately meet new people with whom you have much in common.

No matter what type of Greek speaking job in London you wish to find, it’s sure to be available. There is, quite literally, one of everything in this city of millions and the economic and employment outlook only continues to improve. As the battles of austerity become memories rather than current debates, London will stand out in Europe as one of the cities that weathered this economic climate the best.

Final Thoughts

The United Kingdom has escaped the economic recession unscathed, nor has the Greek economy. But both countries are on the road to recovery as positive signs trickle in — in the form of employment numbers, job openings, and stock market indicators. The time to pursue employment in Greek speaking jobs has never been better.

When seeking a Greek speaking job in London, it’s worth recognising that conditions on the ground don’t always reflect the headlines in major European newspapers. Doom and gloom certainly sells better, but the reality is far less gloomy and instead much more full of opportunities for Greek speaking jobs — and all jobs in general.