Background Checks: Tips for Job Applicants and Employees
oday, most of the employers check into your background before deciding whether to hire you or keep you on the job. When they do a background check, it’s important to know who to contact if you think an employer has taken an incorrect decision based on background check. It is equally important to know, what you can do to rectify the error.
Questions about Your Background
An employer may ask you for all sorts of information about your background, especially during the hiring process. For example, some employers may ask about your employment history, your education, your criminal record, your financial history, your medical history, or your use of online social media.
It’s legal for employers to ask questions about your background or to require a background check — with certain exceptions. When an employer asks about your background, they must treat you the same as anyone else, regardless of your race, national origin, color, sex, religion, disability, genetic information (including family medical history).
Use of Background Reports
Some employers try to find out about your background by hiring someone to do a “background report” on you. Among the most common are criminal background reports, past employment and education reports. But special rules apply when an employer gets a background report about you from a company in the business of compiling background information.
- Before getting the report, the employer must tell you that they might use the information to make a decision related to your employment, and must ask for your written permission. You don’t have to give your permission, but if you’re applying for a job and you don’t give your permission.
- The employer may reject your application. If the employer thinks they might not hire, keep, or promote you because of something in the report, they must give you a copy of the report and a “Summary ” that tells you how to contact the company that provided the report. That’s because background reports sometimes have mistakes. If you see a mistake in your background report, ask the background reporting company to fix it, and to send a copy of the corrected report to the employer. Tell the employer about the mistake, too.
If the Employer Finds Something Negative in Your Background
If your background report has some negative information, be prepared to explain it — and the reason it shouldn’t affect your ability to do the job. If you don’t get hired or promoted because of information in your background screening report, the employer must tell you orally, in writing, or electronically:
