Fudging Of Job Credentials Common Hiring Hazard
By Kevin Smith© Pasadena Star-News, September 25, 2005
Fraud.
It's a word no business wants to hear -- particularly when it comes to its own employees. But the falsification of academic credentials and the concealment of past criminal activities is more common in the corporate world than one might expect.
And sometimes it hits close to home.
Last week, The San Gabriel Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross learned that Fred Brito, a man who had been hired by the nonprofit agency Aug. 10 as a fund-raising officer, was not who he said he was.
Brito, who used false credentials and the assumed name Fred Brito Gomez, was discovered to be a felon who had served more than 11 years in prison for various crimes -- the most recent in 2002. Sounds bad, but the Red Cross isn't the only business that has encountered this kind of deception.
"The falsification of academic credentials happens as frequently as 5 to 10 percent of the time," he said. "Sometimes an individual might not have gotten their degree for technical reasons -- like they missed three credits of a phys-ed class. But we've had senior executives who have falsified both bachelor's and master's degrees."
One was a senior-level executive vice president of a major bank in the
"She said she had a bachelor's degree from an eastern university and a Harvard MBA. ... But neither school had ever heard of her," he said. "We verify every degree that's claimed, and we always find out our candidates' Social Security numbers and their maiden names if they are female to make sure the school isn't making a mistake."
But the schools rarely do. In fact, Kaplan said he's never encountered that situation during his 27 years in the business.
Ironically, many companies don't necessarily insist their candidates have degrees, Kaplan said.
"You'd be amazed at how many clients don't require degrees," he said. "We prefer a degree, but if someone has a terrific track record of experience, there is some room for flexibility."
But one quality that is almost always required of job candidates is integrity. And when someone fabricates academic credentials on their resume their integrity is immediately brought into question, he said.
Kaplan said job candidates also frequently omit negative job experiences from their resumes, such as terminations. Others say their are still working for a business, even though they may have left months ago, he said.
"I don't believe most of these people harbor criminal intentions," he said. "They aren't necessarily doing it to commit malicious acts. They are doing it because it enriches their chances of getting the job."
Angie Turner, chief executive officer of the San Gabriel Valley Chapter of the American Red Cross, said her organization took "every prudent step" and performed its due diligence when hiring Brito.
An interview team reviewed his resume and application, and also did reference and criminal-background checks, she said.
Red Cross chapter spokesman Dereck Andrade, who learned of Brito's criminal past by doing an Internet search, said his agency plans to beef up its hiring process even more.
"After this incident, we are going to be implementing some changes in our policies that will include fingerprints with our background checks," he said.
Doing thorough reference checks and background investigations of job applicants has become increasingly important as a means of preventing personnel-related crimes and the legal consequences of such crimes.
Reference checks and calls to former employers barely scratch the surface when it comes to digging for information about a candidate, according to Chuck Rice, a senior attorney with the law firm of Kilpatrick Stockton LLP in
Rice said many employers will only provide verification that a person worked for them as well as the dates of employment and job title held to protect themselves from potential claims of defamation or slander by a former employee.
But the law doesn't prevent former employers from giving more information about an individual.
In fact, they are free to tell the prospective employer the type of person the employee was, although "many choose to provide only neutral information," Rice said.
-- Staff writer Marshall Allen contributed to this report. Kevin Smith can be reached at (626) 962-8811, Ext. 2701, or by e-mail at kevin.smith@sgvn.com.
