I think that congress needs to pass legislation making it ILLEGAL for any company or business outside of banking, security, etc to discriminate against any potential hire based on ones credit. I can understand criminal background checks and a business/company deciding not to hire someone for a crime they committed. But not hiring someone based on their credit is ridiculous. Even though the person is qualified, interviewed for the job, was hired for the job, then told days later that based of their credit, they will not be offering them the job. This is beyond ludicrous and its happening to millions of people all around the country especially the long term underemployed who have gotten really behind on their bills . Something needs to be done. Read some testimonies from real people that this is happening to.
http://jobsearch.about.com/...
TSA Job
I went through entire process at TSA and got hired. They even made a badge for me. I then got a package in the mail saying I could not work there because I had medical bills over $5000 that were late. This was back in 2005. The process was long to get the job, I had to take written tests and vision tests etc...I was really upset. If I would have filed bankruptcy before applying I would have been hired but my bills were in process of being paid through my car insurance being that they were from an accident. Now I am in sales and I probably would have been paid well had I been working for them what would have seven years. I could have been a manager by now
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Life Ruined
My husband is unemployed, used to work in the banking industry for over a decade, he is denied almost everywhere he goes due to his bad credit, we are broke and basically blacklisted. How are we supposed to get better financially if he can't get hired anywhere? This is all so backwards. We are months away from losing our home & car and everything we own. We'll be literally left in the street with a young child, how can we call this America?
—Guest Angie
Registered Phlebotomist
Is it true that I can't get a job as a phlebotomist because of my bad credit I understand about getting a car but I feel that my credit should not affect me getting a job. I have applied with so many companies over the last 2 years and I can't get anything. All I want to do is work make a decent hourly wage pay my bills and take care of my family
—Guest r. P
Bitter Irony
This is one major reason that businesses say they cannot find qualified candidates -- HR is the new Gate Keeper of the jobs. OCR readers that detect the key words and dispose of all other resumes, credit scores and profiles tainted by the loss of a job is IRONY at it's best! And what happened to internships? I was told recently the term is plug and play that HR uses, candidates with exact credentials only. Are they looking for associates or robots? I have been denied a great job due to my credit score, I also just got a call back for a hospital clerical job that I really want , and they had me sign off on a criminal/education and credit check. I pray my qualifications will outweigh my negative credit since my unemployment loss, after 12 years with one employer! The government needs to offer incentives to companies to once again offer internships, HR needs talent antennae and not credit scores to make decisions, and companies need to accept that criminal and education checks are the key.
—Guest Bad Credit
This Needs to Stop
Once upon a time if you had bad credit that meant you paid higher for the things you wanted like a car or a house, if you could get a loan for that. Now employers are in my opinion calling me a thief without saying the word. I have never been in any trouble nor have I ever stolen anything. Bernie Madoff I am sure had awesome credit and look what he did. I think if someone with a criminal record with good credit has a better chance of getting a job than me. We all deserve second chances and to not be judged. We all have families and other responsibilities but those needs can't be met if I can't get a job because of bad credit. Life happens and its not like it was my aspiration in life was to have bad credit. If companies did an audit of all current employees they might be shocked at how many current employees are struggling with their own bad credit and glad they have a job to fix it or maintain it. I am sick of getting callbacks for a job and then they check my credit, now I'm not right.
Denied job
So i worked for a company for 10 months as a temp. My stats were better than some of the full time employees. The company opened up new full time positions which I applied. I recently found out that I was not offered full time employment because of my credit history. however they hired outsid people who has no experience in the industry.
—Guest Mrs Bee
Character?
There are three candidates for president. The first is a war veteran, is a vegetarian, and has never committed adultery. The second consults with astrologists and has committed adultery. The third has been kicked out of office twice, drink a minimum of one quart of whisky per night and sleeps in until noon. The first is Adolf Hitler, the second is FDR and the third is Winston Churchill. The point of this posting is that the excuse for checking credit is that it speaks volumes about your character. This example proves that what looks like bad character may not be. A child molester could have excellent credit.
—SpaceMountainMike
They Look at the Number, Not the Person
The truth is that insurance companies use all sorts of data about people all the time -- for example, when underwriting insurance policies. What State Farm and others have learned is that there is a statistical correlation between good credit and other things they think are important. This may or may not be true, but that's what they think. Also, it's legal to use our credit reports for all sorts of things, including getting a job. Now personally I think it's unfair. People with bad credit ratings probably need the jobs worse than anybody, but can't get them. Using a number makes it easy for them, and they don't want to spend the time and money to ask about your situation and see that you are really a great person and would make an excellent employee. Like I said, it's unfair, but it's legal. And they have these policies that they don't break. Insurance companies are big bureaucracies --almost like the government. So you can look for a different type of job or work to get your credit score up. But that's the subject of a different post.
—Guest glzXReSVJSXMfngOgr
Denied Employment Due to Credit AGAIN
I've easily been denied 10+ jobs due to my credit score (which in my opinion isn't that bad). Not all jobs I have applied for have been corporate jobs. I even applied at food service and drug stores and I am denied a job even when I will not be handling money! It's embarrassing when I am offered a job and then given the fair credit act to sign and I have to explain why my credit score is lower. I have medical bills in collection and I am trying to pay them back after major hospital stays and tests. I am 25, going on 26 and am starting to think maybe filing for bankruptcy is the only way I will be able to obtain employment. I've never owned a credit card and sometimes I am even denied a SAVINGS ACCOUNT at a bank! Embarrassing, depressing, and outright discriminatory.
—Guest needajobnotgovtplan
No hope
You would think a military veteran with experience would be able to find a job. Not so much! I was discharged in 2010 and I haven't had a job since. I'm an excellent worker but because of my credit due to not having a job to pay bills I can't find a job. Where are the so called "employers" that are looking for hard working people, dedicated individuals.
—Guest Guest
Dear friends,
I wanted to let you know about a new petition I created on We the People, a new feature on WhiteHouse.gov, and ask for your support. Will you add your name to mine? If this petition gets 100,000 signatures by April 04, 2013, the White House will review it and respond!
We the People allows anyone to create and sign petitions asking the Obama Administration to take action on a range of issues. If a petition gets enough support, the Obama Administration will issue an official response.
You can view and sign the petition here:
http://wh.gov/...
Here’s some more information about this petition:
To make it ILLEGAL for companies or businesses to discriminate against POTENTIAL NEW HIRES with Bad Credit
Today we are finding out more and more people are unable to find work because of bad credit and its especially hitting those who have been out of work for year or longer. I have read horror stories of people who are were qualified for the job, went in for the interview, got hired and then was informed that because of their credit, they were immediately terminated. That is not fair and it is the reason why so many people like myself are unable to find a job. We as a society should give people who have been down on their luck another chance especially if they were unable to pay their bills due to circumstances beyond their control. I was laid off 4 times over 8 years and because of that I have bad credit from my getting behind on my bills.
There story is MY story and we need to do something about this. I am aware about 5 states where its already illegal but it needs to be a national law that affect everyone. I think if this law is passed nationwide it would help bring down the unemployment because a lot of people are qualified for the job openings but cant get hired based on their credit which means the job goes unfilled and that person stays on unemployment. Please sign your name so we can get this petition to President Obama.