Advice

Just because you've had your employees screened, does not mean that they can and will not change. Changes in personal circumstances, workload or responsibility can often result in behavioural changes that could affect your business. It is therefore important that you are vigilant of any changes in employee behaviour.

What to look out for:

• Major or unexplained changes in lifestyle or expenditure.
• Unexplained change in attitudes to work or performance, for instance, sudden loss of interest in work or over-reaction to career changes, promotion of others or similar disappointments.
• Over-emotional behaviour, very short fuse and other indications of stress.
• Underperformance or erratic performance together with behaviour that suggests alcohol or drug abuse.
• Violent or bullying incidents or expression of extreme and views, be they violence-prone, racist, religious prejudice etc.
• Unusual interest in aspects of work outside of the employee's personal remit or in security measures.
• Look for changes in working patterns or in relationships.
  
  For example:
  Failing to take holidays, working long hours and working alone. Failing to take holidays may indicate a fear that there is something hidden that might come to light if another employee were to take over the job for a short while.
  
  
• Frequent unexplained absences may be a warning sign.
• Repeated failure to follow normal recognised procedures and processes and changes in the individual's attitudes to security.
• Changes in relationships, including, for example sudden or marked changes in social habits, withdrawing from socialising with colleagues.

Imprisonment and increased fines for those who hire illegal workers! 

From 29 February 2008, employers who negligently hire illegal workers can now face a fine of up to £10,000 for each offence and those who knowingly hire illegal workers; face an unlimited fine and a prison sentence.

Employers now need to make more stringent checks to qualify for a defence to an allegation that they have hired an illegal worker.

Action

Before employing any individual, you should make sure that they are eligible to work in the UK by checking appropriate documents and keeping copies;

This should be done for everybody and it is recommended that this becomes part of your pre-employment checks if this is not the case already;

N.B The provision of a National Insurance number in isolation is never sufficient for establishing a defence.

The defence to negligently employing an illegal worker

An employer will have a defence if it obtains certain documents from prospective employees before employing them to check that they are eligible to work in the UK.

What happens if after you have employed someone, you have suspicions about their entitlement to work in the UK?Solution

Contact GSL Employment Screening & Validation Services who can assist you with all your screening requirements