I found an article that is short, sweet and to the point about credit reports being used as Pre-employment background checks. According to an article from ABC News found on the WAPI 100 Radio Station, in Cleveland, Ohio the actual use of credit reports as background checks ofr pre-employment screening purposes has been greatly exaggerated. The brief article termed it a “misconception” that most employers are running credit reports on their job applicants.
As most know the ability for employers to conduct credit reports as background checks has been a matter of great controversy. Many claim it shows bias and is unfair as many otherwise qualified employment candidates are rejected as a result of their credit report, which for the most part is a consequence of the economic downturn. Related legislature has been passed in different states prohibiting or limited the employer from conducting these credit background checks with the exception that the credit report is directly relevant to the job in question. Recently, California Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, vetoed such a bill.
The article from ABC News reinforces what we see here as a background checking service. Out of our clients a small minority actually conduct credit reports on their job applicants, and most only do so when the job is related to the position. Most of the pre-employment credit reports are related to employment candidates applying for financial positions, and in some cases the credit reports are used to ascertain job applicants who would have privy to sensitive proprietary data.
I realize that for certain employment candidates this may be hard to accept, as they have been turned down for employment, but the results of the recent survey by Employment Screen IQ comes as no surprise and confirms pretty much what most in the background checking industry know already.
3 replies on “Credit Reports as Background Checks May Be Exaggerated”
In survey after survey, including a recent MSNBC survey, more than 90 percent of Americans say that workplace discrimination based upon someone’s personal credit report is wrong and should be illegal. ZERO statistical evidence exists to tie bad credit reports to fraud! It’s already illegal in 3 states and HR3149: The Equal Employment for All Act would make it illegal in every state, but most Americans don’t even know the legislation exists. Please support the overwhelming will of the people and the rights of highly qualified American workers to compete on a level playing field during this horrible economic disaster. Join our FB PAG at: http://groups.to/h.r.3149 or shoot us an e-mail at hr3149@hotmail.com with”sign me up” in the subject line.
As “survey after survey” is always a curious term, including the recent MSNBC Survey, which was I was not able to find online, I would appreciate you sending information, or links, as to which surveys you are referring. I would be happy to post these surveys and their results.
In know that one such survey was ascribed to SHRM. Here is what I found online, regarding SHRM’s response.
“All of these stories rely on studies by the Society for Human Resource Management, or SHRM, showing that employers are more and more often turning to credit checks to screen applicants. The CNN story notes: “60 percent of employers are using credit checks when filling at least some of their openings. Only 35 percent reported checking credit in a 2003 survey, and only about 13 percent did so 1996.”
But such bold conclusions come as a surprise to the SHRM itself. The organization says it has no longitudinal studies about the percentage of employers performing credit checks — and that comparing the 1996, 2003 and 2009 studies is comparing apples to oranges.”
http://washingtonindependent.com/92502/are-employers-performing-more-credit-checks-on-job-applicants
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