Are You Required to Verify Employment Information?

From time to time, businesses might receive a verification of employment (VOE) request. VOE requests are quite common and may come from various requestors. An individual in charge of human resources often receives these requests. Depending on the size of the company, the HR representative may struggle with how to respond. Small businesses especially don’t always know how to respond to a VOE in these situations.

Are companies required to verify employment information?

Well, the answer depends on a handful of factors. The answer is sometimes open-ended from a legal standpoint. State and federal governments may require employers to respond to VOE requests that come from state or federal agencies. Otherwise, laws might not require the same thing when requests come from other sources. Mortgage lenders, for instance, can request this information, and employers have no obligation to provide answers.

If a debt collector submits a request, then an employer has no obligation whatsoever to respond. Random requests, or those without an actual purpose, can be denied as well. Typically, businesses won’t respond to VOE requests that will hurt an employee unless required by law to submit answers. State laws tend to protect employers that provide truthful and accurate information in good faith, whether mandated by law or not.

Common Situations Involving VOE Requests To Employers

Employers need to respond to VOE requests from state and federal agencies. Laws are usually implemented to mandate valid responses to such requestors. For mortgage companies and creditors, an employer doesn’t have to respond in most cases. An employer should respond in these situations, though, since an employee probably initiated the request. The same cannot be said for debt collection agencies, and most employers ignore them.

For the best results, employers should implement official protocols for handling VOE requests. Different employees shouldn’t be treated differently when a request reaches the employer. Employers can and should require consent from their employees in cases where a response is optional instead of mandated. These days, many employers make an employee sign a form consenting to discretionary VOE requests. Doing so protects an employer.