The right to work here

The Right to Work here?

Everyone has a right to work, but not all have the right to work in the UK. Employing those who want to work here is one issue, but employing those who can legally work here is another.

Checking the legality of documentation is fast becoming an enormous problem with the production of better fake documents.
From now until Brexit day we anticipate thousands of workers will enter the UK before the door is shut. Many will be in the FM, care, healthcare, building, catering and leisure industries. The majority will have genuine paperwork and a legal right to work here.

However, a minority will not be eligible. Sifting these out is a big issue especially when fines of £20,000 or imprisonment are the penalties for employing a person without genuine paperwork. One firm using our solution is discovering many fakes. Based upon the going rate of fines you could equate this to a million pound saving since they came on board. It is hardly surprising as there are an estimated 8,000+ producers of fake documents across Europe.

How does the HR or regional manager carrying out interviews proceed confidently? An interviewer can, using our process driven solution, tell immediately whether the interviewee has genuine documents and is legally allowed to work here. For the less than the cost of a cup of coffee per candidate you get to sleep easy knowing that you do not have illegal workers  and are keeping on the right side of the law.
At the same time, HR could delegate large elements of the work to operational staff. As the right to work Home Office guidance process is built into our software it ensures a greater level of compliance even with inexperienced users. HR can oversee the results centrally focusing on the exceptions creating process efficiencies.

The right to work mobile version – uAuthenticate Mobile

For the Area Manager interviewing staff away from the office our checking process is completely paperless and carried out on a mobile.

The interviewer taps in the country of origin and a list of all necessary documentation will appear. They can then tell the candidate what is required for the interview.

Our solution allows the interviewer to take a photograph, save it to the cloud and the candidate signs the screen to allow storage of their documents. Essentially, providing a permission based process.

Now for the clever part – our App can scan the documents, read and save all the data from the information stored on the passports’ chip too.

All the information is stored safely and securely in our encrypted cloud solution for easy retrieval or easy deletion. In addition, a centralised HR team or compliance function can easily review all workers information.

The right to work desktop version uAuthenticate Pro

Ideal for office based HR recruiters on a PC or laptop interviewing a large number of candidates at a central location.

Our Pro version incorporates a passport checker (the same type used in airports and border crossings). This allows a forensic level of checks for the passport in UV, Infrared light and chip reading. The solution checks scans of ID documents against a document library like a technological game of snap. This system is the only one that offers Home Office Guidance and this level of full passport authentication.

The storage of PII for this solution is All the information is on the clients own servers for easy retrieval or deletion.

User speak

One fast growing contract cleaning company, Birkin Cleaning Services of Welwyn Garden City is one of our clients. They have uAuthenticate mobile and appreciate the system as insurance that every new member of staff is working legally.

Birkin CEO Paul Ashton finds the system essential to his recruitment. He said: “We looked at several systems and chose uComply because it offered the widest range of checks, the price is keen and its training is superb. Ultimately, the system demonstrates our active commitment to stringent processes and therefore peace of mind as a business owner. It’s easy to use, non-aggressive, does what it promises and our staff love it for its simplicity.”

Paul, who is Chairman of the CSSA Innovation and Technology Board has invested heavily in technology this year. He said “This is the first piece of technology that has immediately paid for itself, impressed our clients and enhanced our reputation. It sets the tone of professionalism right from the start at the very first interview. I wish all software was so easy and user friendly.”

What happens?

There will be some readers asking the question. ‘What if a very clever fake gets through the system….’. The answer is comforting because if the employer can prove that it has all the documents checked, cleared, signed and dated, there should be no fine. So as the forgers get smarter, so do uComply’s solutions. If the Home Office guidance changes, our systems are always up-to-date. We have the only system that incorporates Home Office guidelines combined with this level of checks. Furthermore, no data leaves the UK.

The process does not end once a candidate is clear as our process is continuous. We create alerts for expiring documents like passports, VISA, Biometric cards, country ID cards, ECS check and driving licences. Our development, help desk, data storage functions are UK based with no external call centre.

Our pricing is within reach of employers, contractors and recruitment businesses. Employing one illegal worker by accident can cause immeasurable damage to your business and tarnish your valuable reputation.

When considering employing someone the golden rule is ‘If in doubt – don’t’.