Job Hunters - Protect Yourself From Poor Credit Discrimination

Although it may not be ethical, some HR managers use a job applicant’s credit score as a way to judge one’s financial responsibility. In this day and age a lot of employers look at someones credit to see if they are responsible with their finances. This is reasonable for positions that require the employee to handle business finances and in some cases other people’s money, but it’s becoming increasingly more common for jobs of any kind including managerial positions — so a sloppy credit history could also affect your eligibility for promotion.
How can you protect yourself from being discriminated against based on a less-than stellar history?
A credit report can only be requested legally in one of two circumstances:
1. You personally request access to your own credit report.
2. A company that will be involved with you financially is requesting it (credit lender, financial institution etc.)
Or, if another form of background check such as checking your name against the Homeland Security Act is required, one may access your credit report also.
When applying for your job, make note of which forms you fill out and what types of background checks you agree too. If you spot one that will look at your credit score, refuse to sign it and inform your interviewer that you are not intending to do any financial business with them. If the company insists, they are actually breaking the law.