JOB applicants in China are more likely to exaggerate their achievements - or tell downright lies - than their counterparts in other Asian countries.

More than two-thirds of human resources departments in China's mainland have encountered job applicants being dishonest about their background or experience in their resumes, a survey by HR company Hudson revealed yesterday.

Among the 1,500 companies interviewed in Asia, Chinese mainland-based companies reported the most instances of dishonest resumes - 68 percent of approximately 600 companies surveyed. In Hong Kong the figure was 49 percent, while in Singapore it was 46 percent.

The figure was even higher among mainland media, public relations and advertising industry, with 91 percent saying they have met candidates who exaggerated their resumes.

Mark Carriban, managing director of Hudson Asia, said the high turnover in those sectors contributed to candidates exaggerating experience and salaries, as this might strengthen their negotiating position.

But it is not only candidates who behave less than honestly, Carriban said. Some companies mislead when describing their job vacancies.

Firms surveyed reckoned that the areas in which candidates were most likely to lie or exaggerate were, remuneration (59 percent), job responsibilities (55 percent) and academic qualifications (42 percent).

Problems with resumes have pushed employers to run reference checks - often using outside companies - as 59 percent of mainland companies interviewed now regard this as a key priority.

In comparison, in Hong Kong only 36 percent placed the same importance on running checks, while in Singapore the figure was 39 percent.

Among the industries surveyed, the consumer sector attached the greatest significance to reference checking, with 77 percent saying it was very important.

Feng Lijuan, chief analyst with 51job, a human resource services company, said exaggeration "would not help in finding a job," as this would be exposed in interviews.

• background [´bækgraund] n.背景；经历；幕后 (初中英语单词)
• survey [´sə:vei] vt.&n.俯瞰；审视；测量 (初中英语单词)
• hudson [´hʌdsn] n.哈得孙河 (初中英语单词)
• yesterday [´jestədi] n.&ad.昨天；前不久 (初中英语单词)
• advertising [´ædvətaiziŋ] n.广告a.广告的 (初中英语单词)
• director [di´rektə] n.指导者；....长；导演 (初中英语单词)
• strengthen [´streŋθən, ´strenθən] vt.加强 vi.变强 (初中英语单词)
• behave [bi´heiv] v.举止；表现；举止端正 (初中英语单词)
• honestly [´ɔnistli] ad.诚实地，老实地 (初中英语单词)
• reference [´refərəns] n.参考；参照；出处 (初中英语单词)
• comparison [kəm´pærisən] n.比较；对照；比喻 (初中英语单词)
• running [´rʌniŋ] a.奔跑的；流动的 (初中英语单词)
• resource [ri´zɔ:s] n.手段；智谋 (初中英语单词)
• exaggerate [ig´zædʒəreit] v.夸张，言过其实 (高中英语单词)
• approximately [ə´prɔksimətli] ad.近似地，几乎正确地 (高中英语单词)
• saying [´seiŋ, ´sei-iŋ] n.言语；言论；格言 (高中英语单词)
• consumer [kən´sju:mə] n.消费者；用户 (高中英语单词)
• significance [sig´nifikəns] n.意义；重要性 (高中英语单词)
• finding [´faindiŋ] n.发现物；判断；结果 (高中英语单词)
• mainland [´meinlənd] n.大陆；本土 (英语四级单词)
• academic [,ækə´demik] a.学术的 n.大学学生 (英语四级单词)
• downright [´daunrait] a.直率的 ad.彻底 (英语六级单词)
• dishonest [dis´ɔnist] a.不诚实的 (英语六级单词)
• exaggeration [ig,zædʒə´reiʃən] n.夸张，夸大 (英语六级单词)