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In a report published 11 November 2004, the FSA painted a mixed picture of how financial firms are managing their pre-employment screening. The report looked at 18 financial firms ranging from wholesale banks to fund administrators.

Here is what the FSA observed during their visits:

"In our visits, we observed a range of vetting procedures proportionate with the size of the organisation, such as:

• Tiered vetting according to sensitivity of job role;
• Service Level Agreements with agreed vetting standards for recruitment agencies;
• Random audit of recruitment agency vetted staff;
• Verification of complete school, university and employment history;
• Credit, address and telephone number checks;
• Bank of England terrorist list checks;
• County Court Judgement checks;
• Equivalent vetting for all staff, contractors, overseas and outsourced employees; and
• Annual risk assessments for all staff

We noted that some Human Resources departments also involved their Information Security and Compliance teams in assisting the vetting process.

However, in a number of cases, we observed poor standards of vetting. Several of the above vetting procedures were absent in a firms whose profile seemed to justify them. In other cases, the process was inconsistent between different types of employee.

Where firms recruit staff externally or make use of contractors/temporary staff recruited through agencies they need to ensure that an appropriate level of vetting is carried out, commensurate with the sensitivity of the individual's role."

View the complete report at www.fsa.gov.uk

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“A background check is not only for the benefit of the company as a sound business practice, but also for the benefit of all employees. It is not reflection on an applicant.”

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