To provide 3 years worth of bank statements for a job application?

[JanuaryKat]

It's for a part time admin job with the NHS.

I applied through a recruitment agency but because I have been a stay at home mum for over 3 years I have to provide 3 years worth of bank statements.

1. I don't want to give out that kind of personal info
   
2. It would cost me £30 plus yo get copies of the statements
   
   AIBU?

[Balletgirlmum]

Bob & Kate. A full birth certificate or passport is the easiest form of ID required to prove someone has the right to work in the UK. Employers have to ask for this or risk huge fines.

[expatinscotland]

NFW! I wouldn't give them this at all.

[Redroses11]

I doubt the birth cert is for customs BobandKate0H unless they're planning on smuggling you out of the country!

Have you anything to declare?
Yes, my cleaner.

[BobandKate0H]

agree it seems strange and dodgy.
but in the same vein i have been trying to get some rubbish cleaner jobs and got asked for my birth certificate ! why do they require this ? - is it to show customs or something and when i got a copy of mine,it had no first name on it so i got rejected from the interview before it started - how can this be reasonable ?

[Redroses11]

Seriously though, I'd prefer to have someone go through my knicker drawer than 3 years of bank statements!

Which of course leads onto....

Debit £20 NoMoreItchyFandango.com

[lorelei9]

Red, it's a whole series of sketches!!

[Redroses11]

Of course, you could then find such gems as

Debit £500: BailMeOutOfJail.com
Debit £1000: CriminalsROurClientsSolrs&Co.com

followed in a timely fashion by............

Debit £200: WinesStraight2UrDoor.com

[lorelei9]

Red, you have time to post on MN, you have time to write the comedy sketch you just created with your post

[pointythings]

The NHS doesn't demand this. I work for them, I support interviews and we do have people who have gaps in employment. We only ask for bank statements as proof of address/identity.

[Redroses11]

Can you imagine the glee though, sifting through 3 years of bank statements.

Debit £50 - SextoysRUs.com
Debit £90 - SmackMeHarderBaby.com
Debit £40 - CrotchlessKnickers.com

[BigQueenBee]

From my own personal experience, it is better to hold out for a job you think feels right.
I've had a few years of really crappy jobs and have taken on cleaning/janitorial work for the time being.
The pay not be brilliant but it is immensely satisfying to do a good job and not having someone breathing down your neck and the constant stream of criticising.
I remember an interview I had a few years back; the company were wanting me start up new projects in my filed of expertise,
Short story is that these " projects", never came to fruition, it was a yarn that had been spun for all new employees.
Basically they were a bunch of bullies who made my life a misery.
They are currently under investigation I'm told.
Why not get self employed status and go freelance.
There are a lot of people who require domestic help and office work.
You can charge what you like. If you are good at something ,there will always be a call for your skills.
Agencies charge employers a lot of money, yet pay the staff very little in relation to their charges.

[lorelei9]

Mimi, interesting.
January, wonder what Brook Street will say to back up what they're asking...

[JanuaryKat]

Thanks for the replies! What would I do without mumsnet I'm going to contact HMRC & try & get proof of my employment status for the past 3 years.

I really need to find work asap, but handing over all that personal info is a complete no go.

No response yet to my emails to Brook St or the nhs.

[mimishimmi]

That's crap. I wouldn't want to work for anyone who wanted that kind of information. DH did once and basically they want it to see what kind of leverage they can have over you vis-a-vis pay, bonus and conditions.

[BigQueenBee]

A few years ago, after being laid off from work, I went to a job club. I remember one of the advisors telling us to be aware that some agencies were asking for bank details and that one of the men who attended the job club had had his account cloned.
He had applied for a job online and was naïve enough to disclose bank details.
A Direct Debit was set up for a mobile phone contract . The agency was kosher, but it turned out an ex employee was using their name to snare people into giving out personal details.
This was on the GOV site, which I know isn't vetted.

[Bunnyjo]

My DFather used to have P4 security clearance for various MoD bases and Nuclear Facilities for a number of years before retiring. He's never once had to submit bank statements.

Very suspicious and ridiculously OTT.

[PoppieD]

Would help if i post it!

[PoppieD]

It's prob not relevant, but we have this warning up on our nhs job site at moment- theyre not asking you for any fee by any chance?

[AntiHop]

The only possible reason I could think they would do this is to check you're not lying about your employment history. You could have been in other jobs and sacked from them and then trying to cover up about being sacked by saying your weren't working. But I really think they need to trust you. Providing bank statements is a massive invasion of privacy.

[scribblegirl]

filiboom I was just about to ask whether they could get it from HMRC as opposed to asking for statements - sounds like an idea. Sort of like how you shouldn't lie about your last salary because they'll have access to that via HMRC when you start.

[PausingFlatly]

Filiboom that sounds like the correct solution.

It DOES answer the question about whether the individual really was out of work (unlike bank statement).

And it DOESN'T contain lots of personal information (unlike bank statement).

This sort of behaviour is something I'd expect from a small company without an HR department, where they're making it up as they go along. Not a company whose core business is recruitment.

[Filiboom]

I was also asked for this after a 4.5 yr SAHM career break, and was told joint account wouldn't be accepted. When I pushed for alternatives, I was told a letter from HMRC verifying the period of unemployment (but not tax returns) would be acceptable. I spoke to HMRC who said they get this a lot and sent out a standard form letter that I forwarded on. It did the trick and I got the job. Might be worth speaking to your agency and seeing if they'll accept that?

I (sort of) get the reasoning but think bank statements request is too intrusive.

Good luck!

[PausingFlatly]

Of course it's a data protection issue.

Yes, you are free to gratuitously hand your personal data to any one you wish.

But Brook Street isn't free to ask you for it. The DPA covers collection of data as well as storage, processing, and selling it on.

They're almost certainly in breach of the DPA because of over-collection of data.

[MistressDeeCee]

I wouldnt give an employment agency 3 years of my personal financial information. I actually think that would be a reckless thing to do. Id just find another agency