Many employers use credit reports as part of their pre-employment screenings to determine an applicant’s character and responsibility. With more and more people facing layoffs and job loss it is sure to affect their credit history. In a report by USA Today, “If you’re poor and have poor credit, you’re taken out of consideration from a whole host of jobs.” http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2009-02-12-creditcheckinside_N.htm Norm Bour, co-host of ‘The Real Estate and Finance Show,’ said, “Employers are sometimes reluctant to hire people with bad credit because their credit could signal irresponsibility or over-indebtedness that could interfere with their ability to do the job.” According to Career Builder, “It is estimated that 30 percent of credit reports have some form of inaccuracies.” http://jobs.aol.com/articles/2009/01/26/bad-credit-can-kill-your-job-search/ With such a high percent of inaccuracies it is important that people take advantage of free yearly credit reports that may be pulled from any of the three credit bureaus Experian, Equifax and TransUnion as well as other free on-line services.
Many people go through rough patches and get stuck in a cycle where they need a job to pay off their debt and re-establish their credit yet they are not considered for a job because of their debt. Critics say it is unfair for personal credit history to be used when judging professional qualifications, some feel that there is no correlation between poor credit and job performance. Employers need to evaluate these reports and determine how this directly relates to the position the applicant is applying for. The state of Hawaii is currently proposing to enact a bill to prohibit any employer from refusing to hire, employ, bar or discharge from employment, or otherwise to discriminate against any individual because of the individual’s credit history or credit report, unless the information in the individual’s credit history or credit report directly relates to a bona fide occupational qualification.
According to the Fair Credit Reporting Act, employees must give permission for employers to conduct background checks, including credit checks. If an employer states that they will be conducting a credit check it is beneficial to be upfront and open about any credit issues. An employer may be more understanding if an applicant is truthful about credit problems.
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