Three-quarters of Job Seekers Applied for Non-existent Roles During the Pandemic

The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) recently announced they were launching a joint campaign alongside Disclosure Scotland, Access NI and JobsAware to combat employment fraud. This campaign hopes to educate job seekers on how to identify employment scams as well as providing a means to effectively report any scams that people may come across.  

The JobsAware initiative has evolved out of existing not-for-profit SAFERjobs. SAFERjobs was founded by the Metropolitan Police back in 2008 as a joint venture between several government organisations to try and combat criminal activity relating to recruitment and job seeking. In 2016, three-quarters of a million job seekers utilised the SAFERjobs platform. JobsAware was launched at the beginning of this year with the intention of becoming “the UK’s number one platform for protecting worker rights”.  

Why is it needed?  

Although the SAFERjobs organisation does a significant amount of work combating employment crime, the stark figures from the pandemic demonstrate that more needs to be done. 74% of job seekers applied for roles that didn’t exist during the past year. This shows that employment scams have never been more prevalent in the UK than they are today.   

Not only are they becoming more prevalent, but they are also becoming increasingly more sophisticated. Chair of JobsAware, Keith Rosser, says:  

“With the way we work and look for work continuing to evolve, job scams are becoming increasingly common and sophisticated. We know how damaging it can be to fall victim to such scams now more than ever. That is why it’s important to educate and arm job seekers with the understanding and support they need to recognise and report suspected fraud.”  

A general lack of awareness, combined with a lack of information on how to identify the scams, has been blamed for the sudden spike. The JobsAware platform hopes to go a long way towards preventing these types of scams.   

Could you spot a fake?  

There are a number of things that you can keep an eye out for when looking for work. The below points cover some of the more common identifying features of scams:  

Poorly Written Job Adverts  

Most reputable organisations are extremely conscious about how they present themselves in the public eye. This is even more true when it comes to a job advert, as this is likely the first-time potential employees will be engaging directly with said organisation.   

Job adverts are normally highly scrutinized by senior management before being posted. If you come across an ad that is poorly written this should be a big red flag if you’re looking for a new job.   

Suspicious Contact Details  

Examining the authenticity of contact details can be incredibly useful when trying to identify a scam. Always thoroughly research any contact details that you are provided with either via the organisation's website, LinkedIn or other social media accounts. If the person you are liaising with, or the email you’ve received doesn’t match the contact details you’ve found independently, it’s best to be wary.  

Unrealistic Salaries  

While there is definite variation in salary for reasons like geography, company size and experience level, if things sound too good to be true, they probably are. If you are contacted with an offer or see an ad with an extremely high salary for part-time hours or an entry-level role, this is likely fraudulent.  

Job Offers Without an Interview  

Even in the world of remote working, interviews are a standard part of the recruitment process. They can be conducted in multiple ways but will generally either be a face-to-face interview, video call, or a regular phone call. Not only are interviews an opportunity for the potential employer to assess whether you’d be a good fit for their organisation, it's also an opportunity for you to do the same. If you are offered a role without any need for an interview this should raise immediate alarm bells.  

Being Asked for Money  

Professional agencies and employers will not ask you for money upfront to be able to work for them. Sometimes scammers will try and legitimise their requests for money by disguising them as requirements for the role, such as a DBS Check, or payment for training. Often, they go to great lengths, such as setting up third-party websites that look legitimate to process the transactions.  

How to report a scam?  

If you have fallen victim to an employment scam or believe you have been contacted by someone with fraudulent intentions, make sure you report it. The JobsAware platform has a dedicated reporting function allowing you to submit your own experiences. You can find it here. This information helps identify scammers and can help prevent these experiences from happening to others.   

If you have parted with money as part of a potential job scam, be sure that you contact the police and they will take the matter further.