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Employment: Are credit checks wrong?

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    When I was younger, I remember my dad becoming frustrated when things became financially difficult, as anyone would. But what really surprised, he was worried about taking a hit on his credit score, not just because it affecting his eligibility, but his current job. Working for the defense industry requires a security clearance. One item necessary for clearance is a good credit history.

    Nearly half of all employers check the credit history of both current and potential employees. I'm guessing the twisted school of thought behind that is if you can manage your money well, you will manage the company's assets well. It's also a litmus test of character and personal integrity, I'm guessing. If that is the case, I think they are only fooling themselves. Also, I think it's flat out wrong. I understand that the days of personal privacy are coming to an end, but to drag someone's financial details out in order to judge what kind of an employee they would be, is ridiculous.

    What if someone had bad credit history, but stellar employment history? What if that person's debt came from ridiculously high medical bills? Most of us know how easy it is to get buried under a mountain of medical fees. At the end of the day, I think it takes the human element out of choosing someone who will work for you, someone you'll interact with on a day to day basis. I guess it's just easier for them to use credit history as a way of gauging a person. If that's the case, they might as well check out a person's "Recently Watched" on Netflix.

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    JFoster Wrote:

    I guess it's just easier for them to use credit history as a way of gauging a person. If that's the case, they might as well check out a person's "Recently Watched" on Netflix.

    They just might one day. They already troll applicant's social media pages. At least that makes a bit more sense than credit checking. I completely agree here. It should not be a consideration. You already do a drug test, a background test, multiple face to face interviews... what more do you need to evaluate someone's potential with your company? Come on now. They should also consider that them landing whatever job they are applying for is quite possibly the applicant's attempt at getting their finances in order, or moving up, etc. This checking of credit is ridiculous and completely unnecessary, with the rare exception of perhaps managing a bank or something along those lines.
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    Unless the applicant is applying to work at a financial institution then I have a big problem with employers being able to conduct credit checks on prospective employees.

    An individual's credit history has little to zero correlation with their ability to do the job they applied for. What if that individual had a medical emergency and went bankrupt because they couldn't pay off their medical bills? An employer will only know that person went bankrupt and immediately disqualify that individual from consideration. What if that individual defaulted on their student loans because they graduated college at the height of the Great Recession? The list can go on and on.

    I'm fine with a prospective employer being able to ask for college transcripts, prior work history, and many other things, but credit history isn't one of them.

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    They have all kinds of nondiscriminatory laws for employeer/employee hiring situations. I think this should be one of them. They shouldn't be able to use your credit report against you. That already happens when going for houses, vehicles, opening businesses, etc. That's enough.