By Avinash Nair
Copyright thehindubusinessline
Nearly 30 per cent of employee background verification checks conducted in Gujarat have failed, according to a recent report by OnGrid, a Gurugram-based background verification and HR technology firm. These checks were typically carried out as part of the candidate-screening process in the state, on behalf of employers.
The company highlights that nearly 3 in 10 employment verifications fail in Gujarat, making it one of the states with high verification failures.
“Employment verification failures in Gujarat are alarming. The rate currently stands at 30 per cent, much higher than our national average of 10–12 per cent,” said Manav Jain, Chief Business Office, OnGrid. Background Verification is not just about ticking compliance boxes—it is central to mitigating fraud and safeguarding organisations from reputational and operational risks.
The major reasons for these failures are employees misrepresenting details related to prior employment, missing or inconsistent documentation, weak internal HR verification mechanisms, and process lapses in larger organisations.
“One of the reasons for employment verification checks failing is that many employees misrepresent prior employment details. They may hide, misquote, or exaggerate information related to salaries, employment tenure or other aspects of employment. Some candidates also deny prior employment by claiming they were part of a small organisation. Such missing or inconsistent documentation is classified as a verification failure,” Jain told the businessline. To date, OnGrid has partnered with over 4,000 clients across various industries and completed more than 500 million verifications.
Apart from employment verification, the company also conducts educational verification of candidates found suitable by the employer during the hiring process. In Gujarat, the failure of these education verification checks stands at 7.56 percent which is in line with the average failure rate.
“We conduct pre-offer checks that include National ID, employment history, court records, credit history verifications (among other checks) for both white-and blue- collar workforce. For gig workforce employed by ecommerce, logistics, ride hailing firms etc most of the checks are instant and part of the onboarding journey. Comprehensive checks, which typically have a larger TAT, include education and address verification, social media (if required), and drug testing—depending on client requirements. While nearly 70 percent of white-collar hiring undergoes verification, only about 30 percent of the blue-collar workforce is verified by organisations reflecting a compliance gap,” the added.
According to OnGrid, companies are increasingly deploying pre-offer checks in IT/ITES and among quick-commerce and delivery platforms for their gig workforce. While some organizations still prefer comprehensive checks post-onboarding, the key focus has moved beyond mere compliance. Today, the priority is risk mitigation, ensuring both operational continuity and protection against fraud, the company added.
Published on September 30, 2025
