Studies Conflict Regarding Usefulness of Employer Credit Checks

(EstateNewsWire.com, May 17, 2013 ) San Francisco, CA -- Credit checks by prospective employers is not a new endeavor or practice. However, it is the target of a new level of blow-back following some concerns about the act. Nine states have now passed laws that restrict employers from looking over credit scores for job applicants prior to making a hiring decision. Those opposed to the action state that it discriminates against the prospective workers.

For the past 20 years, nearly half of all agencies have used credit agencies to buy information regarding employees. The ascertaining of information is said to be used for hiring decisions regarding low paying jobs. Steven Burman stated that the Times utilizes the check system for every hire. Burman is the president of Credit Advocates, which is a nonprofit in the state of New York. The group was created to assist consumers in overcoming credit problems.

A statement by the Times stated: “An employee dealing with bill collectors could be a distracted worker, he said. And how financial problems are explained could offer insights into an applicant's character: Does he take responsibility for debts, or does she blame problems on someone or something else?”

Consumer advocates, without fail, disagree with the rationale of the company, and state the evidence regarding the issue is not full-proof as the Times makes it out to be.

“One study published in 2008 in the International Journal of Selection and Assessment suggested a correlation between a person's financial history and workplace theft. But a 2011 study in the Journal of Applied Psychology found no link between a person's credit score and what it called "deviant" behavior like workplace theft. (It did, however, find a correlation between a low credit score and an agreeable personality.)”

Companies have another reason to utilize the credit checks, however. It is one that is hard to argue against, as the lawsuits under the 'negligent hire' titling has grown. "If an employee's actions hurt someone, the employer may be liable," says Privacy Rights Clearninghouse, a California-based consumer advocacy nonprofit. "The threat of liability gives employers reason to be cautious in checking an applicant's past. A bad decision can wreak havoc on a company's budget and reputation as well as ruin the career of the hiring official. Employers no longer feel secure in relying on their instinct as a basis to hire."

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