By Alexandra Marriott and Andrew Lowcock
Have you ever lied or found out you’ve been lied to during a job interview? If you have, you’re not on your own, according to the results of a new study.
A third of Australians are prepared to tell fibs or exaggerate the truth during job interviews in order to put them ahead of the pack, The Age reported yesterday.
The most common topics interviewees are prepared to lie about are:
- Previous work experience (17 per cent): fabricating job titles, exaggerating their time of service to hide a gap in their career, or lying about tasks they claim responsibility for; when in fact they were a small part of a larger team.
- Referees (16 per cent): getting a friend to act as a personal reference instead of a former colleague or manager.
- Previous salaries (10 per cent): exaggerating previous salary earned in order to extract a larger one.
- References (six per cent): making up a written reference under a false name and submitting it to interviewers.
- Qualifications (three per cent): listing fake degrees or qualifications, or embellishing existing qualifications they may have received during a one day seminar or from a non-accredited education provider.
This study demonstrates and reinforces the risks inherent in the recruitment process. Effective recruitment is a key to preventing a business from exposure to commercial and operational risk, and reduced productivity.
Making a recruitment decision is the commencement of an employment relationship – with all the attendant risks and obligations. Accordingly, the study is a useful reminder to employers of the importance of due diligence in undertaking assessment of employment applications.
In turn, the study flags the importance of ensuring a business undertakes rigorous (and consistent) performance monitoring of new employees – rather than relying upon claims made at interview or referee reports – particularly given access to unfair dismissal jurisdiction once minimum engagement periods are satisfied.
Additionally, employers should have regard to the capacity of an individual to make a claim under the ‘General Protections’ of the Fair Work Act 2009, where they feel that they have been discriminated against in an employment/recruitment decision made by a business.
Ensuring that all employees are assessed against objective and non-discriminatory criteria will ensure protection against such claims – and is likely to result in better recruitment decisions.
MyCareer have listed some handy tips for job interviewers, just in case employers come across a liar in an interview. As this study confirms, they’re more common than you think.
What do you think about the issue of lying in job interviews to get a competitive advantage? Vote in our poll!
