Record of Employment

Intro to Record of Employment?

A Record of Employment (ROE) is an official document that tracks an individual’s employment history and earnings information. While specific formats vary by country, these records serve critical functions for both employment verification and administration of government benefits, particularly unemployment insurance. For employers, accurate and timely management of these records is an essential compliance obligation with significant implications for their workforce.

Definition of Record of Employment

A Record of Employment (ROE) is an official document that provides detailed information about a person’s employment history, earnings, and the circumstances of their employment interruption or termination. The specific format and requirements vary by country, with Canada having one of the most formalized ROE systems.

In Canada, the ROE is a specific form (Service Canada Form INS 2106) that employers must complete when an employee experiences an interruption of earnings, such as when they are terminated, laid off, take a leave of absence, or experience other scenarios where they stop receiving regular income from the employer. The Canadian ROE contains detailed information including:

• Employer and employee identification information
• Period of employment
• Total insurable earnings during the specified period
• Reason for issuing the ROE (using specific codes)
• Details about final pay periods
• Additional comments if applicable

In the United States, while there is no exact equivalent document called an “ROE,” similar employment verification information is captured through various means, including:

• The Verification of Employment (VOE) process for lending or housing
• State unemployment insurance claim documentation
• Social Security earnings records
• W-2 forms and other tax documents that verify employment and earnings

In other countries, employment records may take different forms with specific local requirements, but they generally serve similar purposes: documenting employment history, facilitating access to government benefits, and providing verified employment information for various administrative needs.

Importance of Record of Employment in HR

Records of Employment serve several critical functions in the employment ecosystem:

Government Benefits Access: ROEs are essential for determining eligibility for unemployment benefits and other social support programs. The information they contain helps government agencies calculate benefit amounts and eligibility periods. Without proper ROE documentation, former employees may face delays or difficulties accessing benefits they’re entitled to receive.

Legal Compliance: In jurisdictions like Canada, issuing ROEs within specified timeframes is a legal requirement for employers, with potential penalties for non-compliance. Failure to issue timely and accurate ROEs can result in financial penalties and compliance investigations.

Employment Verification: ROEs provide verified employment history that individuals may need for various purposes, including securing housing, obtaining loans, or applying for new positions. These records offer a standardized way to confirm past employment relationships and income levels.

Dispute Resolution: In cases of employment disputes or legal claims, ROEs and similar employment records serve as official documentation of employment dates, earnings, and termination circumstances. This documentation can be crucial evidence in resolving disagreements about employment terms or separation conditions.

Data Integrity for Social Systems: The aggregated data from employment records helps governments analyze labor market trends, adjust unemployment insurance systems, and develop employment policies. Accurate ROEs contribute to the overall integrity of social support systems and labor market analytics.

Employer Brand Management: Handling ROE issuance efficiently and accurately reflects positively on an employer’s professionalism and respect for departing employees. Conversely, delays or errors in providing these records can damage an organization’s reputation and relationship with former employees.

Administrative Efficiency: Standardized employment record systems streamline verification processes that would otherwise require customized documentation and verification for each situation requiring proof of employment history.

The importance of ROEs extends beyond individual transactions to support the broader social safety net and labor market functioning, making their proper management a significant HR responsibility.

Examples of Record of Employment

Here are three examples illustrating how Records of Employment function in different scenarios:

Example 1: Seasonal Employment Layoff in Canada
A construction company in Ontario employs workers seasonally, with regular winter layoffs due to weather limitations. When the construction season ends in November, the company must issue ROEs for all laid-off workers. Their HR department prepares the ROEs within five calendar days of the interruption of earnings, as required by Service Canada. Each ROE includes the appropriate code for “shortage of work” (A) as the reason for issuing the ROE, along with details of the employee’s insurable earnings from the previous 26 weeks. This information allows the laid-off workers to apply for Employment Insurance (EI) benefits during the off-season. The company submits the ROEs electronically through the ROE Web service, which provides immediate transmission to Service Canada. This efficient process ensures employees can quickly apply for benefits without delays. When the construction season resumes in spring, the company rehires many of the same workers, beginning a new cycle of employment that will be documented in future ROEs if needed.

Example 2: Employment Verification for Mortgage Application in the U.S.
An employee at a technology company in California applies for a mortgage. The lender requires verification of her employment history and income stability. While the U.S. doesn’t use the specific Canadian ROE system, the verification process serves a similar function of documenting employment. The mortgage company sends a Verification of Employment (VOE) request to the employer’s HR department. The HR team compiles the required information, including employment dates, current position, salary history, and likelihood of continued employment. This information draws from the same employment records that would be used for unemployment claims if the employee were to be terminated. Additionally, the employee provides W-2 forms from the past two years, which serve as official tax records of her employment and earnings. Together, these documents function similarly to an ROE by providing verified employment history for an important administrative process.

Example 3: Global Organization Using an Employer of Record Service
A U.S.-based software company employs developers in multiple countries through an Employer of Record (EOR) service. When one of their Brazil-based developers decides to leave the company, the EOR provider in Brazil handles the local employment documentation requirements. In Brazil, this includes issuing the required termination documentation and updating the employee’s work record in their work and social security booklet (Carteira de Trabalho e Previdência Social or CTPS), which functions similarly to an ROE by officially documenting employment history. Simultaneously, for a departing employee in the United States, the EOR complies with state-specific unemployment insurance documentation requirements. This example demonstrates how employment record requirements vary globally, and how EOR services help organizations navigate these different systems while ensuring employees receive proper documentation of their employment history regardless of location.

How HRMS platforms like Asanify support Record of Employment

Modern HRMS platforms provide comprehensive capabilities for managing employment records and documentation:

Automated Record Generation: HRMS systems can automatically compile employment data required for ROEs and similar documents, drawing from existing payroll records, time tracking information, and employee profiles. This automation reduces manual data entry and associated errors while ensuring consistent information across all employment documentation.

Compliance Monitoring: Advanced platforms include jurisdiction-specific rules engines that track ROE submission deadlines and requirements based on employee location. These tools alert HR professionals to upcoming deadlines and compliance obligations, reducing the risk of late filings and potential penalties.

Electronic Submission Capabilities: Many HRMS platforms offer direct integration with government systems for electronic ROE submission, such as ROE Web in Canada. These integrations streamline the submission process, provide confirmation of receipt, and maintain digital records of all submissions for audit purposes.

Secure Document Storage: HRMS solutions provide secure, centralized repositories for all employment documentation, including historical ROEs, making it easy to retrieve records when needed for compliance audits, employee requests, or verification purposes.

Multi-Jurisdiction Support: Global HRMS platforms like Asanify incorporate country-specific employment record requirements, allowing organizations with international workforces to maintain compliant documentation across different regulatory environments. This is particularly valuable for organizations using HR analytics across global operations.

Separation Process Workflows: Integrated workflows ensure that ROE generation is automatically triggered as part of the employee separation process, whether due to termination, leave of absence, or other circumstances requiring employment documentation.

Employee Self-Service Access: Many platforms provide secure portals where former employees can access their employment records and documentation, reducing administrative burden on HR teams while improving service to departing staff.

Audit-Ready Reporting: Comprehensive reporting tools allow organizations to demonstrate compliance with ROE and employment documentation requirements during internal audits or regulatory investigations, providing clear evidence of timely and accurate record management.

These capabilities transform what would otherwise be a complex manual process into a streamlined, reliable system that ensures compliance while reducing administrative overhead for HR teams managing employee separations.

FAQs about Record of Employment

When is an employer required to issue a Record of Employment?

Requirements vary by jurisdiction. In Canada, employers must issue an ROE whenever an employee experiences an “interruption of earnings,” which includes: termination (voluntary or involuntary), layoffs, leaves of absence (maternity, parental, sickness, etc.), and any period where an employee’s weekly earnings decrease by more than 40% for seven consecutive days. The ROE must be issued within five calendar days after the end of the pay period in which the interruption of earnings occurs, or within five calendar days after the employer becomes aware of the interruption. In the U.S., while there is no exact ROE equivalent, employers typically must respond to state unemployment agencies within 7-10 days when a former employee files for unemployment benefits, providing similar employment verification information.

What information is typically included in employment records and why is it important?

Most employment records include: personal identification information (name, address, social security/insurance numbers), employment dates (start and end dates), earnings history (usually for a specific period prior to separation), reason for separation (using standardized codes in many systems), and employer identification information. This information is crucial because: it determines eligibility for unemployment and other benefits, it affects the calculation of benefit amounts, it provides verified employment history for future reference checks or loan applications, it documents the official reason for separation which may impact benefit eligibility, and it creates an auditable record of the employment relationship. Accuracy is essential as errors can delay benefits, create tax complications, or cause difficulties in future employment verification.

How do requirements for employment records differ across countries?

Employment record systems vary significantly: Canada has the formal ROE system with standardized forms and electronic submission requirements. The U.S. has state-specific unemployment insurance documentation and verification systems rather than a single national form. European countries often incorporate employment history into social security systems with country-specific requirements (such as the UK’s P45 form). Asian countries typically have their own systems, such as Japan’s Certificate of Employment or China’s labor contract documentation requirements. Global employers must navigate these differences by: maintaining country-specific procedures, leveraging local expertise through HR partners or EOR services, implementing HRMS systems with multi-country compliance capabilities, and conducting regular compliance audits across all jurisdictions where they operate employees.

What are the consequences of errors or delays in issuing employment records?

Potential consequences include: delayed or denied benefits for former employees who depend on this documentation for unemployment claims, regulatory penalties for non-compliance (especially in countries with formal ROE systems), damaged relationships with departing employees that can affect employer reputation and reviews, increased administrative burden from having to correct errors or respond to inquiries about missing documentation, possible legal liability if documentation errors contribute to financial hardship for former employees, and administrative complications for the employee when applying for future positions or financial services. To avoid these issues, employers should implement automated systems that generate required documentation, establish clear responsibilities for employment record management, maintain updated knowledge of regulatory requirements, and conduct periodic audits of their employment documentation processes.

How should multinational organizations manage employment records across different countries?

Best practices for global employment record management include: implementing a global HRMS with country-specific compliance modules that accommodate different requirements, creating clear documentation protocols for each country of operation with local compliance validation, establishing centralized oversight combined with localized execution of employment record processes, partnering with in-country experts or EOR services like those offered by Asanify for locations without direct legal presence, developing standardized workflows that incorporate jurisdiction-specific triggers and requirements, maintaining secure centralized storage of all employment records with appropriate retention periods for each location, conducting regular compliance audits across all countries of operation, and providing training for HR staff on country-specific requirements. Organizations should balance global consistency with local compliance, ensuring proper documentation regardless of employee location.