Bank asking for "Pre employment questionairre"!!!

[The Lone Gunman]

I'd suggest the key defence in an IR35 investigation woudl be whether they only apply this level of check to employees and contractors but they allow other third parties to work on site without checks on the individual.

I would suggest that you could easily defend this position by the fact that the plumber and the cleaning staff do not have the knowledge or the access to the system required to steal data let alone defraud or rob the institution.

[handyandy]

Does this mean that you've actually filled in and given back the pre employment form???!!!

Yep - no one gets through the door without having provided details of past 3 years worth of gigs (simply saying you're an employee of MyCo is no good). Even the Accenture consultants have to do the same thing. In addition you sign a waiver greeing to credit checks being carried out (to identify bankrupts and people with uncleared CCJ's) and also giving the client the right to do other background checks.

[faceless]

Does this mean that you've actually filled in and given back the pre employment form???!!!

I'm afraid it is getting quite common with many of the banks (retail and investment) as they need to show their internal and external auditors that they have effective controls in place to prevent fraud - auditors are more and more talking the line that pre-employment checks shoudl be rigourous and applied not just to permies but to contractors, temps, veondors and even conslutants (whoops - did I mis-spell that).

My current gig has this requirement and I've seen some people we'd expected to bring in via an outsourced supplier get knocked back because the individuals couldn't provide the details - I even saw one guy get walked off site when a check came back showing he had a CCJ that he hadn't disclosed.

I was a little unsure myself but it is becoming standard practice and the same level of checking is applied to consultants who come on site and access my clients systems.

Another way to think about it is to compare it to all those MOD jobs that require SC or DV security checks - if you're a contractor and you have to have that level of checking does it make you an employee in IR35 terms? I don;t think so.

I'd suggest the key defence in an IR35 investigation woudl be whether they only apply this level of check to employees and contractors but they allow other third parties to work on site without checks on the individual.

[handyandy]

I'm afraid it is getting quite common with many of the banks (retail and investment) as they need to show their internal and external auditors that they have effective controls in place to prevent fraud - auditors are more and more talking the line that pre-employment checks shoudl be rigourous and applied not just to permies but to contractors, temps, veondors and even conslutants (whoops - did I mis-spell that).

My current gig has this requirement and I've seen some people we'd expected to bring in via an outsourced supplier get knocked back because the individuals couldn't provide the details - I even saw one guy get walked off site when a check came back showing he had a CCJ that he hadn't disclosed.

I was a little unsure myself but it is becoming standard practice and the same level of checking is applied to consultants who come on site and access my clients systems.

Another way to think about it is to compare it to all those MOD jobs that require SC or DV security checks - if you're a contractor and you have to have that level of checking does it make you an employee in IR35 terms? I don;t think so.

I'd suggest the key defence in an IR35 investigation woudl be whether they only apply this level of check to employees and contractors but they allow other third parties to work on site without checks on the individual.

[donny]

Apologies, current client is an outsourcer onsite at the bank - but they are being chucked offsite - the bank wants to keep us on, via a different agency - Hays.

Specifically Im interested in the IR35 implications. I have knocked back the questionnaire telling the agency that its for perm employees - but they say we have to sign it...!!! As far am Im concerned I think you'd have to be crazy to sign it.. imagine if that form came out in an investigation..!

If it's Hays then there's a chance that the upper contract doesn't reflect what they give you anyway (allegedly) and so you could be unwittingly caught anyway...

Walk.

[Earlyflash1]

[QUOTE=faceless;637921]Apologies, current client is an outsourcer onsite at the bank - but they are being chucked offsite - the bank wants to keep us on, via a different agency - Hays./QUOTE]

Hays tried that one on me as well. I told them to get stuffed.

They even asked me again, 2 months after I stopped using them!

[faceless]

absolute poppycock. I referred to them as a bank simply because I assumed it was a bank type thing to do to ask for this stuff, and lots of people work on here for banks. OK?

I think the bank is his client.

He is following the time-honoured tradition of financial sector contractors, by which they point out that they work for banks even when it isn't relevant, and "present client" would do. That way, the rest of you know that he deserves to be treated with more respect than if he worked in a non-financial sector.

[faceless]

Apologies, current client is an outsourcer onsite at the bank - but they are being chucked offsite - the bank wants to keep us on, via a different agency - Hays.

Specifically Im interested in the IR35 implications. I have knocked back the questionnaire telling the agency that its for perm employees - but they say we have to sign it...!!! As far am Im concerned I think you'd have to be crazy to sign it.. imagine if that form came out in an investigation..!

Sorry, don't understand the question! What has your present bank to do withh an agency???

If you are a Ltd company, this just doesn't happen - what you did before you became Ltd is quite frankly none of their business, certainly if you're not asking for credit.

If you are possibly looking at going with an umbrella co, then go Ltd...

It's a load of tulipe...

[NetwkSupport]

Has anyone been asked for a "pre employment questionairre" to be filled in? Present bank are asking for this via agency - as well as passport copy, 5 years references etc.

agency reckons they have loads of contractors doing it with no problems, and that it won't affect IR35 status, err yer right.

How have you handled this situation?

I had the same thing for current gig (investment bank)
3 yrs addresses (plus proof i lived there!) 5yrs references (and the DID phone them ALL!) credit chk, etc......
may have something to do with anti-fraud or fsa rules

[BrilloPad]

I think the bank is his client.

He is following the time-honoured tradition of financial sector contractors, by which they point out that they work for banks even when it isn't relevant, and "present client" would do. That way, the rest of you know that he deserves to be treated with more respect than if he worked in a non-financial sector.

compassion

I would be amazed if any company would ask for stuff after contract signed and you start work.
<awaits replies proving who wrong I am>

[NickFitz]

J P Morgan made me sign the Official Secrets Act before they'd even take me from reception to the interview.

I think me-laddo is getting off lightly

[thunderlizard]

I think the bank is his client.

He is following the time-honoured tradition of financial sector contractors, by which they point out that they work for banks even when it isn't relevant, and "present client" would do. That way, the rest of you know that he deserves to be treated with more respect than if he worked in a non-financial sector.

[cojak]

Sorry, don't understand the question! What has your present bank to do withh an agency???

If you are a Ltd company, this just doesn't happen - what you did before you became Ltd is quite frankly none of their business, certainly if you're not asking for credit.

If you are possibly looking at going with an umbrella co, then go Ltd...

It's a load of tulipe...

[faceless]

Has anyone been asked for a "pre employment questionairre" to be filled in? Present bank are asking for this via agency - as well as passport copy, 5 years references etc.

agency reckons they have loads of contractors doing it with no problems, and that it won't affect IR35 status, err yer right.

How have you handled this situation?