Work the Wilds is a job search engine and social networking site for people employed in the outdoors. We do not vet or validate the members on this website. It is important that you carry out important checks and investigations before entering into any situation or contract.
REGISTRATION CERTIFICATES AND INSURANCE
A lot of outdoor sports, like diving, make it easy to validate a registration (check out the PADI website for example). Other sports don’t have an official registration process and you will need to validate any documents, certificates or information presented to you.
Some employees, often freelancers may be required to carry insurance. If you are required to use your own vehicle for work, you may need to upgrade your insurance. Check these documents are valid and up to date.
IMPORTANT NOTE ABOUT DOCUMENT SHARING
Members can share documents through the website but Work the Wilds does not validate these documents. We only act as a storage and portal for sharing. It is critically important that you validate any documents and claims yourself. Work the Wilds cannot validate proof of identity of employees or employers registered on our website. We recommend you carry out these checks and validations
DBS/BACKGROUND CHECKS
Most employment and all employment working with children and minors will require a Background or Police check. If you are an employee, try to keep this up to date. If you are an Employer, remember these checks are not infallible because they only contain information up to the date it was created.
You can find out more about the UK DBS on gov.uk. If you are in another region, check your government website or ask your local police.
It is wise to do extra investigative work before entering any contracts, a google search can return a lot of information, and a Facebook profile can tell you a lot about someone.
Ask robust question during your interviews, and follow up the answers up with checks of your own.
QUALIFICATIONS CHECKS AND FIRST AID
We recommend all employees have a First Aid certificate. Many companies will require Advanced Certificates, Wilderness First Aid, Level 2 or Higher, Emergency First Aid for example. If you are new to a sport and don’t know what qualification you need you can contact Employers or other members with our messaging system or ask questions on Wild Chat.
It is a likely requirement that your First Aid training is refreshed every few years. Many employees will have evidence of continuing professional development by refreshing certificates or achieving new qualifications over the years. This demonstrates knowledge and a commitment to the sport. Employers should be sure to make sure qualifications are up to date.
REFERENCES
All employees should be able to provide references. Even if you are new to a sport, the reference you provide can be a character reference or demonstrate responsibility in another job. Employers should verify all references with a telephone call. There are a number of countries that outsource reference checking if you have a lot of hiring and need extra support.
IMPORTANT NOTE (AGAIN)
Work the Wilds does not validate identity, references or documents of any of the users on our website. It is very important that employers conduct their own thorough checks during the interview process.
REVIEWS
Work the Wilds has created a review system allowing employers to leave reviews for employees registered on our website. If a member has No reviews, this can be as telling as a good or bad review: You can see how long a user has been a member. If a Member has been registered with Work the Wilds for a long time, but has no reviews, this can be worth investigating. And the if an employee replies to a review it can be a good indication of the relationship they had with previous employers and how they handle situations.
You can use the messaging system to contact any employers that an employee has claimed to work for and ask them a few questions. Don’t forget to do a google search for any extra information.
CONTINUING DEVELOPMENT
It is good practise for employees to stay updated with training requirements, and continue to grow their skills. Ask employees for copies of their training documents.
AND AGAIN…
On our information pages about outdoor jobs, we also include links to popular searches. Work the Wilds lists these as information we have found in our research, and sometimes as advertising space. It is really important to use our website as a starting point, and then do your due diligence to find the qualifications you need.
Our website will work best for you if you use it this way. Wild Chat allows you to chat with the community in a public forum and receive feedback from people around the globe. Private messaging allows you to have a private conversation with members, where you can ask anything you want to know about a sport or job.
Remember to be safe online. Do your due diligence and please read our SAFETY CENTRE for more advice on how to stay safe online and when using this website.
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