Limit The Usage Of Credit Checks By Employers
Over 60 percent of employers are using credit checks to screen job candidates. But how effective are they? While some employers say that a job candidate with bad credit may be at higher risk for employee fraud and theft, the truth is that there are no definitive studies that prove this to be true, especially in this economy. A matter of fact, using credit checks as a determining factor in whether or not a company will hire someone may unfairly punish those who have experienced hard times through no fault of their own.
Below are a few reasons why we should consider limiting how employers use credit checks when trying to fill a job opening:
- Bad credit may not be an indicator so much of bad character as it may be an indicator of a bad economy or even simply a bad set of circumstances the job applicant found themselves facing. We as a society are still under the false assumption that people who are unable to pay their bills are somehow more morally flawed than the rest of us, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth.
- When employers deny Americans employment simply because of their credit record, they are becoming part of the problem by creating a vicious cycle where the debtor can never pay off their debts because they are unable to secure income to do so.
- By giving employers access to the credit records of job applicants, we may be inadvertently encouraging them to pass over certain people because they fear they will have to deal with wage garnishments from creditors. As the law is now, no employer can fire a worker because they have a wage garnishment; but is it really okay for them to deny employment to those who may be vulnerable to the same?