London - More than 90 percent of employers check applicants’ social media accounts before hiring them, it has been revealed.
About 93 percent use Facebook and Twitter “to keep tabs” on potential candidates and to vet them before interviews.
And more than half of recruiters have reconsidered appointing someone based on their online profiles – with 61 percent of these U-turns due to “negative” reasons.
These include use of profanities, spelling and grammar mistakes, drug references, sexual posts and mention of alcohol use.
The findings were revealed by recruiting software company Jobvite, which surveyed 1 855 human resources managers.
It comes as a survey of young people found one in five post pictures from nights out.
One in ten regularly share photographs of themselves drinking, Barclays’ LifeSkills initiative found. This is despite the fact that 77 percent of young people are aware that potential employers may be checking social media profiles before hiring.
A quarter still have no privacy settings in place and a further 11 percent are unsure if they are protected or not.
Kirstie Mackey, of LifeSkills, said: “Employers are increasingly using social media to find out more about prospective candidates prior to meeting and making their hiring decisions.
“In a competitive job market, it’s important to present yourself in the best possible way – both on and offline. It’s important to remember that what you do and say online could be seen by anyone and will be there forever.”
Daily Mail