When you’re interviewing people for a job, you need to know the difference between work-ready and available.

Work-Ready Means Vetting…

Work-ready means the candidate has been vetted. They have undergone background checks, reference checks, and any other required screening.

Vetting is important because sometimes job applicants who seem qualified on paper may not turn out to be good employee material.

Applicants may have misrepresented their qualifications, shown a spotty or poor work ethic, or even have criminal convictions. Any of these make them a poor candidate for your company. Unfortunately, you may have to terminate them later on if you don’t vet them first.

…and Training

Work-ready also means the applicants have been trained to do the available job. They may have been trained at another company, or they may have gone specific training on equipment or tools before they begin the job.

Work-Ready Employees Can Begin Right Away

Ultimately, hiring a work-ready employee means that the new hire can actually begin work right away. If you make a hiring decision on a Friday morning, the new worker can show up Monday morning, ready and able to work.

An available worker, on the other hand, may not be able to show up Monday morning. “Available” means they are not currently working and have applied to work for your company. But they have not been vetted or trained.

Vetting can take two weeks or more.

Training a new worker to be fully up to speed can take anywhere from several days to several months, depending on the job.

As a result, available for a job means so much less than being work-ready. A work-ready candidate can start to be productive for your company right away.

Stride Can Ensure that Applicants Are Work-Ready

If you want work-ready people, let a staffing agency help. Staffing agencies are experienced at vetting applicants. They have contacts and systems in place to perform vetting and can do it quickly.

It’s a good idea to vet top candidates at the same time as the interview.

Staffing agencies can also find trained employees for hire.

Stride Staffing’s goal is to build stronger connections between employers and individuals by doing staffing differently. Really. Contact us today for hiring and recruitment help in Richardson, Texas and other locations in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.