Recruiting extra staff for Christmas? Don’t forget the Right to Work checks…

Recruiting extra staff for Christmas? Don’t forget the Right to Work checks…

Like it or not, the countdown to Christmas has begun. And for many businesses, from restaurants to retailers, so has the drive to bring on additional staff to cope with the seasonal rush. Commercial pressures during busy hiring periods may make it tempting to cut corners but whether you’re hiring a few people or many thousands, you still need to ensure that all potential employees are eligible to work in the UK. So how can this work if you’re recruiting staff across many different locations?Non-compliance with Right to Work checks can bring more than just the associated fines - immigration…read more >
A range of identity validation services for Right to Work compliance

A range of identity validation services for Right to Work compliance

When it comes to Right to Work software, we know very well that a ‘one size fits all’ approach doesn’t work. The service you need will depend on your process, in-house knowledge, risk profile, the volume of checks you need, your budget and how you want to make checks and so much more! We recently spoke to Arc Hospitality about why they introduced ID validation software as part of their Right to Work process, how our range of services helps them to maintain compliance across their business and how they’ve been able to vary the technology they use as their requirements have evolved. Arc Hospitality are…read more >
Building a case for Right to Work check software in your business

Building a case for Right to Work check software in your business

Introduction All businesses in the UK, regardless of organisation size or sector, must ensure that every employee has the Right to Work in the UK. This means seeing and checking relevant identity documents in the presence of the holder. This can be a physical presence or via a live video link. In both cases, you must be in physical possession of the original documents. However, the number of people attempting to using fake identity documents to illegally gain employment continues to grow. What’s more, if you employ someone who has no Right to Work in the UK or who is using…read more >
Are you up to speed with Right to Work legislation?

Are you up to speed with Right to Work legislation?

Right to Work legislation is not straightforward! If you're making checks on staff, including temporary or voluntary staff, you can be shown 17 different types of document, potentially issued in hundreds of different countries, that may need to be checked in a variety of combinations to demonstrate eligibility to work in the UK.  And the Employers guide to Right to Work checks on the Government website stretches to 40 pages! So how confident are you that you and your staff all understand the rules and are all compliant when making identity document checks? We’ve put together a quick quiz based on some of…read more >
How will Brexit impact Right to Work checks?

How will Brexit impact Right to Work checks?

As you’re no doubt aware, all UK employers are currently required to conduct Right to Work checks on every prospective employee to comply with illegal working legislation and avoid unlawful discrimination But with huge uncertainty among UK businesses about Brexit, we are often asked how Right to Work legislation and processes may change when we leave the European Union. Of course, the answer is that none of us know for sure. However, we can be sure that there are already a significant number of illegal workers in the UK and that the attraction to try and gain illegal employment in…read more >
Making Right to Work checks: what happens when they go wrong?

Making Right to Work checks: what happens when they go wrong?

During a webinar with our partners CIPHR - 'Building a case for electronic Right to Work checks' - I gave an overview of current Right to Work legislation and the risks associated with employing illegal workers and shared how our solutions help to speed up Right to Work checks. As part of the webinar, I asked participants how they were currently making checks and what they thought were the biggest risks of getting checks wrong. Read on for a summary of the presentation...1. What are Right to Work checks?As you probably know, if you’re employing staff in the UK, you…read more >
Overcoming 7 challenges of Right to Work checks

Overcoming 7 challenges of Right to Work checks

If you employ people in the UK, you are probably aware of the legal requirement to check that all potential and existing employees, regardless of their nationality, are eligible to work through Right to Work checks.  Most businesses have a process built into their recruitment policies, often a manual check involving a visual inspection and photocopy of identity document. In this blog, we look at 7 challenges that Right to Work checks bring to a business and how technology can help overcome them. With the growth of more diverse workforces and more flexible ways of working, the challenge of making…read more >
Why do we need to do pre-employment immigration checks on UK or EU recruits?

Why do we need to do pre-employment immigration checks on UK or EU recruits?

As you probably know, every employer has a legal duty to prevent illegal working and is required to undertake pre-employment immigration checks on all staff to ensure that they have the right to work in the UK. But if your recruits claim to be British or EU nations, do you really need to make Right to Work checks?Employers could face prosecution if they deliberately ignore the law and employ someone who does not have the right to work in the UK or if they have ‘reasonable cause to believe’ that they are working illegally. Penalties can include fines of up…read more >
Making Right to Work checks easier in Facilities Management

Making Right to Work checks easier in Facilities Management

As a Facilities Management Company, supplying cleaning, security or catering contracts, you know that you must make checks on your employees to ensure that they have the Right to Work in the UK. But if your team are spread across different sites, working for different customers, you’ll also know that making visual checks and filing copy documents can be a time-consuming challenge.But getting ID checks right is crucial – to protect your business from expensive illegal working penalties, to ensure security at customer sites and to preserve and enhance your company’s reputation.  What’s more, the Home Office have highlighted the…read more >
How we protect our recruitment business from illegal workers

How we protect our recruitment business from illegal workers

With the number of fake passports seized at UK borders reaching a five-year high and high-profile stories of ‘illegal workers’ hitting the press, such as the tale of Byron Burgers, many companies may be concerned about their own screening and on-boarding process. In our first ‘guest blog’, Abbie Pullman, Head of Talent Management at Off to Work, the UK’s leading event staffing solutions, consultancy, recruitment and training academy, shares her ‘Top 10 Tips’ for protecting a business from the risks of illegal workers… "At Off to Work, we don’t profess to be immigration experts. But we are diligent employers and we…read more >