[Opinion] Confirming employee information to lenders

[BusFact]

Following on from some other Garnishee order threads that have been on the site for last few days, I would like to know what your opinions and policies are when you are asked to confirm employment of your staff.

I am referring particularly to low level staff who whenever taking out a loan or getting some form of credit will a little too frequently, result in you, the employer being served with Garnishee orders a few years down the line. Not to mention the stress your staff member comes under due to debt and its costs, which often affects their work performance.

So when the banks / loan sharks / stores phone and ask you to confirm if so and so is permanently employed with you, do you give them the info or do you have a policy that that information is confidential and hope that they don't get themselves into the debt trap?

Views?

[Just Gone]

As far as I know when someone asks for a reference or confirming they work for you, you are obliged to give yes or no answers ....... nothing more.

[Dave A]

I don't have a problem confirming employment.

As far as I know when someone asks for a reference or confirming they work for you, you are obliged to give yes or no answers ....... nothing more.

That's interesting. I've noticed that very few of these calls involve confirming remuneration nowadays.

Generally they want to confirm employment, is it "permanent" employment, and since when - none of which I see as particularly harmful or invasive of privacy.

When it comes to remuneration, I'll confirm or deny a figure if they give one.

I also tend to make note of who is enquiring, and letting the employee concerned know I got the call - which can get interesting when it happens on days when the employee is supposed to be sick in bed with the flu

[Just Gone]

@ Dave .......... yes you can confirm things ......... as I said yes or no answers - but not give out information when asked it. The person phoning has to ask you if the employee is permanant - yes or no, they have to ask you if they earn such a figure - yes or no.

[AndyD]

On a slightly different tangent but same subject, if you were considering employing someone would you ask them for details of any outstanding garnishee orders? Also would they be under any obligation to tell you this info?

Reason I wonder is if an employee ends up with 30 or 40% of his/her salary garnisheed then they're less likely to value their employment and more likely to desert or leave at short notice if they're not taking home what they might consider sufficient renumeration. I've had very capable and valued employees leave at short notice and seek casual work purely to run from the garnishee orders against them.

[Dave A]

On a slightly different tangent but same subject, if you were considering employing someone would you ask them for details of any outstanding garnishee orders? Also would they be under any obligation to tell you this info?

Could you deny them employment because they've got garnishee orders?

[AndyD]

That's answering a question with a question which make me immediately suspicious of quicksand

If you've got two potential employees shortlisted for a position with similar abilities, experience, qualifications and nothing else to separate one from the other then if one was in debt up to his eyeballs and you knew there were 3 or 4 garnishee orders on him then it could be the deciding factor.

[Dave A]

Much like if one is HIV positive and the other isn't

[BusFact]

The yes/no answers do help from the point of view of protecting the private info of the employee which I hadn't thought of before, so thanks for the tips.

My current thought process is a little more selfish. I'm wanting to not tell the caller anything in the hope that the credit is not granted and so they stay out of the debt trap and I don't have to deal with multiple garnishee orders a year or two down the line.

One side of me is saying that this is not ethical and I shouldn't try and control my staff like that. However I am currently sitting with garnishee orders for roughly 25% of my staff and I have one guy applying for a loan to a small loan crowd so that he can pay off a R3,5k bill to virgin mobile and have some spare cash on top of that. Now thats just out of the pan and into the fire in my view. And ultimately its going to become my problem.

[Just Gone]

@ Busfact ....... eish .......... see your point ........... 25% of your staff on garnishing orders !! Thats a lot. When I replied I was also referring to company's phoning other companies to find out about staff who have come for an interview and have used you as a reference. In this instance you have to be quite carefull of the info you part with.

[Dave A]

One side of me is saying that this is not ethical and I shouldn't try and control my staff like that. However I am currently sitting with garnishee orders for roughly 25% of my staff and I have one guy applying for a loan to a small loan crowd so that he can pay off a R3,5k bill to virgin mobile and have some spare cash on top of that.

Wow! That's a high percentage

Sounds like some financial planning training sessions or some counselling might be in order.

[roryf]

I have heard my book keeper telling callers from loan companies, that certain employees are only on a temp contract.The book keeper does the wages and knows about who has orders against them and who can't afford to get a loan.

I also try talk to the employee before they sign an agreement.The employees don't normally check the interest rate or realize exactly how much they will be paying off.

If the employee is a temp then they won't usually get the loan.

[BusFact]

Wow! That's a high percentage

Sounds like some financial planning training sessions or some counselling might be in order.

Well the sample size is a bit small, so may be misleading. Its 4 employees out of only 16 and one is actually a child maintenance order, not a credit issue.

But if anyone knows of a company that provides basic financial training to low educated staff, I could well be interested.

[Dave A]

How are you paying them?
Weekly, bi-weekly, monthly salary?
Cash or into a bank account?

I find the trick is to stop the habit of blowing Friday's pay by Monday and excercising some discipline. That's why I pay all my staff a monthly salary regardless of grade, and into a bank account - no cash.

Then I talk about budgeting.
Draw up a list of monthly expenses.
What is left can be divided up every week and the goal is to try to spend less each week than that weekly allowance.
The change goes to savings for a rainy day, or the occassional big ticket item.

I also differentiate between want and need.

It has worked quite well. I only have one abject failure - ironically one of the highest paid members of staff

[wynn]

I only have one abject failure - ironically one of the highest paid members of staff

Is that you or the wife?????