? about dates of employment- Any H.R. Reps?

[VegasAngel]

I am terrible when it comes to explaining things online but here goes. Currently I am job hunting. A past employer has my dates of employment as 1/99-3/2000 with my reason for leaving as job abandonment

My actual dates of employment were 1/99-5/1999. I quit that job because I accepted a better position with another company w/notice. My supervisor at the time (No longer employed there) never followed whatever procedure they have. When I fill out job applications should I put the dates this employer has or the dates I actually worked there? I dont want to fail backrounds checks & loose a job opportunity because of this. I''m not going to put I abandoned a job when I never did. When I called the employer I was told they were unable to fix the problem since the records are so old. When employers verify this stuff do they contact the employer, go by tax records, etc.? Boy, if I was actually employed all that time they owe me a whole lot of money, plus did they claim me, even though I wasnt really there.? This whole situation is very frustrating for me, any help on what I can/should do is greatly appreciated!!

 

[omieluv]

When you sign an employment application, you are attesting that all data you have provided is truthful, otherwise you can be terminated from the process. So, I would enter the dates your employer has in the system. Reason being, if let's say your potential employer uses an outside vendor to do the verification, the representative will call your former employer and then they will provide the dates they have in their system. If they conflict, the vendor will note the conflict on their report, which could be trouble if you have not had a chance to explain the situation prior to the background check. For the purposes of your actual resume, place down the date that is correct because I have a feeling that if you use the dates your employer has, those will run into the dates of the next job listed on your resume. Usually though, you will complete an application, then meet with the company face to face and then they will run the background check, so you can explain why dates on your application and your resume conflict during your interview. In fact, you do not even have to give the reason "job abandonment" on your application because several organizations have policies in place allowing them to only verify dates of employment and job title to avoid potential law suits. When you fill out an application, rather than "job abandonment," you can just write down "better opportunity." Sometimes they will release salary information, but I believe the former employee must sign something for them to be able to do that.

As far as who the employer contacts for reference checks, that will depend on who you list on your application, for the most part. If they cannot reach any of your professional references from the company, they may try to reach someone in HR, who can at least verify dates of employment. When I worked in staffing, I sometimes would try to reach the payroll person, when all else failed b/c payroll people have access to dates of employment. I would make your references aware of your employment dates and ask them to give the dates the organization has in their records.

Good luck with your job search!!

 

[VegasAngel]

omieluv thanks so much for your reply. I called the employer & asked about it again. This time I was told the only thing they have are my dates of hire & that no where does it say job abandonment. Actually, the woman said there is absolutely nothing in the system/files about me which she herself said was strange. Just like you mentioned they are not allowed to disclose why the employee quit/got fired etc. What really irks me is that I now know why I was missing out on a lot of jobs in the past. I just had a second interview today hopefully I will be back to work soon.

 

[omieluv]

How did the interview go?

Unless I misunderstood your posting, you mention that the reason why you have missed out on previous jobs because your former employer does not have much in their system on you? I doubt that is the reason, since they are able to verify you worked there. Perhaps the conflict with your employment dates could be the reason??

 

[VegasAngel]

I meant I missed out on a lot of jobs because of the discrepancy in employment dates. All these years I was like what the heck....

My interview went really well. This was my second interview with this particular company. They'll call me at the end of the week with a final decision. I have another interview this Wednesday that I'm really exicted about.

One company is much better than the other but I would much prefer the position I will be interviewing for on Wednesday.