background check good sign?

I interviewed (second) and then they called me later to say they forgot to get the background check paper signed. That was it. Been 4 days now....

I find that more and more companies are requiring a background check, even for admin and secretarial jobs! I too had a bg check form filled out and my friend said, "Oh, if you had to sign a form for the bg check, you're in!" Needless to say, I didn't get the job and I probably have a ding on my credit report now. In fact, a lot of places these days have you fill out consent to a check BEFORE they offer you the job! I think that's a little extreme. Employers should only have people fill out background checks if they're making an offer, in my opinion...

WAITING ON A COMPANY TO OFFER ME A JOB.THEY DID THE BACKGROUND CHK CAME BACK FINE. I CALLED TO SEE IF IM GOONA BE OFFERED THE JOB I WAS TOLD THEY ARE WAITING ON A COUPLE OF OFTHER CANDIDATES BACKGROUND CHECK AFTERWARDS THEY'LL MAKE A DECISION THEN. WONDERING IF I'M IN THE RUNNING

If a background check reveals negative information which causes the employer to deny you a job, then the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) requires that the employer must reveal the negative information to you, and where he got it. Then you have a chance to refute wrong information that is contained in any employee background search, or searches backgroundsearch.com done by creditors or landlords.

I had a 2nd interview and the company (insurance) is conducting a background/credit check as we speak.My credit is not that great since I have incurred some late/non-payments as I am unemployed.

Does anyone know at what point employers draw the line regarding the credit report?

AW in Atlanta, Georgia said: I had a 2nd interview and the company (insurance) is conducting a background/credit check as we speak.My credit is not that great since I have incurred some late/non-payments as I am unemployed.

Does anyone know at what point employers draw the line regarding the credit report?

Ususally they look at 50% of your total trade as the cut off point

HR expert in San Diego, California said: Ususally they look at 50% of your total trade as the cut off point

Thank you HR. Will you elaborate?
Much appreciated.

Thank you both for the information.

Just received info from the employer stating that the "final step in the hiring process" is the drug screening and to be on the look out for a notice to get the drug test.

Should I take it then that they are done with the background/credit check?

yeah

Thanks everyone for the information.

Was offered the job today.

I went on the first interview and the job was almost handed to me except that they wanted to do a Background check. HR called me on Monday afternoon requesting my date of birth and told me that it takes 2 to 3 days for background check to come in and that if it comes back ok then I will receive an offer at the end of the week. the end of the week came and went and I didnt hear from anyone. Could it be that I might hear something this week? If I dont get hired will they call me and let me know?

when you are being offered a job and you took it
would they do the background check prior to offering you the job

Iwas offered a job at the first interview for a large corporation but that was after first recieving my resume and an official app. They then had me go take a phys and drug screen the same day as the interview. They offered me the job and said we will just have to wait a few days for it to come back and I was the only one interviewed for the position.

I was offered the job and received the formal offer letter with start date. In the offer letter it states the offer is contingent on bg check. I have to sign a bg check form and return prior to my start date. What type of bg check does a company usually conduct? Is it common for them to offer then reject based on bg checks?

Thank you for the Congrats! I'm sure they will run a credit check to obtain the company credit card. This will be a challenge due to my job loss over the past year and half and difficulty meeting payments on bills. Should I tell them this before the bg check? I would think they would do this before making the offer.

THANK YOU!

I just interviewed with a retail store that told me once they run my background check they will contact me to do orientation/training. I've consented to background checks for past employers before. I was just wondering if this means ive defiantly gotten the job?

Rae in North Arlington, New Jersey said: I just interviewed with a retail store that told me once they run my background check they will contact me to do orientation/training. I've consented to background checks for past employers before. I was just wondering if this means ive defiantly gotten the job?

I am in the same situation somewhat. It is usually a very good sign if they run the bg etc. Usually companies dont run them on people that arent going to get the job. I would be suprised if their was anyone else in the running. At least that is how I usually handle hiring.

Since they told you about orientation etc I would say your in. I hope im in. I have been waiting 3 days with no concrete offer.

HI. I went in for an interview last Thursday and they called me on the following Tuesday to see if I was still interested and that they wanted to go further with me and needed me to come in and do a background check. On Wednesday, I went in and did my background check, the lady told me it would take 2-3 days before it came back and from there on, then we would do the drug test and health assessment? Do anyone know if this means they are hiring me or no?

So, i've been interviewing for this company for the past three weeks, one interview per week. The last time I had came into the workplace was to drop off the ADP background check and release paperwork with signatures and they honestly seemed really interested in me. It's been about 7 days since I dropped off the background check (and I provided a lot of information on my resume, but not quite sure because most of my work experience is overseas in Asia).

I was so pumped up that I had a 80% chance at getting hired at this prestigious company... now everything just seems so deflated.
Now I'm afraid that they're going to give me the old run-around and won't tell me that I didn't get job in a short "we wish you well in your future endeavors" email. How long does background checks take?

I have mostly worked in fortune 100 companies, and if they are going to trust you to make good decisions than your overall personal life needs to be in order. Even if you are out of work, they feel you should have had money in savings to hold you over until you have a new job.

The person with a good credit score (in their eyes) is less likely to become desperate and commit fraud. Even if you are an administrative assistant, you have access to a corporate credit card and some executives give their assistants personal information such as SSN, date of birth to handle passport renewals, etc. So even if you are a good employee but have negative marks on your credit report they would rather hire someone who seems to have their life together and knows how to maintain during tough times.

Just got a offer letter for a job but a contingency background check and drug test is required. I went and did my drug test and it is pending results right now, but my background check came back and have some discrepancies in the academic section. Looks like that I am 14 credits short in getting my Bachelors Degree while I thought I did have my degree, but they can verify my other school from which I had my Associates degree. Now the recruiter is red flagging this saying that I have documented that I have a bachelors degree, but the results states that I dont. I called the school about this and they told me that I dont hold a bachelors degree and that I am 14 credits short!! OMG!! Its been 5 years ago that I thought I completed this program, but looks like I may have to finish this up!

Does this look like a job that will be jeopardized or I may still have a slim chance in landing this? The Recruiter is currently reporting all this to her manager and will notify me with more details to come. I just hope it all works out well.

I'm sorry, but how does a person think he has a Bachelor's degree when he does not? Surely a red flag has gone up in the prospective employer's mind. It goes to honesty, trust and credibility, and it will make them question what else you haven't accurately represented.

With all the people out there who are unemployed, you'd be lucky to still get this job.

Parafreegal in Chicago, Illinois said: I'm sorry, but how does a person think he has a Bachelor's degree when he does not? Surely a red flag has gone up in the prospective employer's mind. It goes to honesty, trust and credibility, and it will make them question what else you haven't accurately represented.

With all the people out there who are unemployed, you'd be lucky to still get this job.

I agree.. Anyone who lies about this should be immediately disqualified. What about those of us who truthfully represented ourselves and can't get hired because of something like bad credit?? I was upfront about my credit issues when a recruiter wanted to do a background check (which includes credit) for a contract assignment. I told her I could take care of the credit issues so I could start. I never heard from the company or recruiter again.

Cynthia in Brooklyn, New York said: I went on the first interview and the job was almost handed to me except that they wanted to do a Background check. HR called me on Monday afternoon requesting my date of birth and told me that it takes 2 to 3 days for background check to come in and that if it comes back ok then I will receive an offer at the end of the week. the end of the week came and went and I didnt hear from anyone. Could it be that I might hear something this week? If I dont get hired will they call me and let me know?

Sometimes it can take weeks or months to do a background check because of the resources these days. They normally give Background Investigators Approx. 2 weeks to investigate the individual and bring their findings to the manager and the managers make the final decision.

From my experience employers usually hire you and process the background check while you're on the job.

AW in Atlanta, Georgia said: I had a 2nd interview and the company (insurance) is conducting a background/credit check as we speak.My credit is not that great since I have incurred some late/non-payments as I am unemployed.

Does anyone know at what point employers draw the line regarding the credit report?

If you explain your circumstances as you did here many if not most employers will accept that as reasonable. I had bad credit in the past and was nearly declined a position 3 times as a result. However when I explained my cirucmstances and how I was going to correct the issue(s) they offered me the jobs anyway. If you have a reasonable explanation and you go to bat for yourself you can often override their policies in this regard. I have anyway.

Nick L in Medford, Massachusetts said: I agree.. Anyone who lies about this should be immediately disqualified. What about those of us who truthfully represented ourselves and can't get hired because of something like bad credit?? I was upfront about my credit issues when a recruiter wanted to do a background check (which includes credit) for a contract assignment. I told her I could take care of the credit issues so I could start. I never heard from the company or recruiter again.

I feel differently. If you know you can do the job and do it well telling a white lie here and there to get the job is smart. I've done so in the past to land jobs and almost all of my past employers begged me to stay when I left. I'm good at what I do and I would never let something that has no signicance in whether or not i can provide the requested services for an employer hold me back if I can help it.

Hannah in Los Angeles, California said: I feel differently. If you know you can do the job and do it well telling a white lie here and there to get the job is smart. I've done so in the past to land jobs and almost all of my past employers begged me to stay when I left. I'm good at what I do and I would never let something that has no signicance in whether or not i can provide the requested services for an employer hold me back if I can help it.

It's called having ethics and a persons courage to tell the truth about the most minimal things says a LOT about that person. I'm assuming your position was not of one that required high amounts of responsibility/trust so it's easy for you to recommend lying.

IslandStyle said: It's called having ethics and a persons courage to tell the truth about the most minimal things says a LOT about that person. I'm assuming your position was not of one that required high amounts of responsibility/trust so it's easy for you to recommend lying.

Quite the contrary. My positions required a great deal of trust and responsability and are high level positions hense the need for the occassional white lie.

I disagree I do not consider that to be a lack of ethics. I consider it having and using common sense. If I know I can do the job as well as or better then the next person I do use common sense in regards to obtaining the position.

I also have very high morals and work ethics and treat my positions as I would if I owned the companies myself hense my track record with amazing references and multiple employers trying to win me back after I decided to move on.

I do not take my career or my work lightly however I disagree with those that say that a person doing what they need to do to obtain a position under certain cirucmstances is such a bad thing. Many employers overlook fantastic potential employees based on what I consider many times to be silly criteria. That's my opinion.

IslandStyle said: It's called having ethics and a persons courage to tell the truth about the most minimal things says a LOT about that person. I'm assuming your position was not of one that required high amounts of responsibility/trust so it's easy for you to recommend lying.

Also when you know the truth will hinder your ability to get a job you know that you can do and very well and you need an income and have yourself or a family to support. A person with common sense will do what they need to do to get that job and will prosper. There is a time and a place for everything. Having common sense dictates how to know when to or not to do something.

I applied for a job and had my second interview, did the drug test and the interview was good. They were very pleased. HR said they would call me back and said they would contact me in a few days. I waited a week and called them. They said I was red flagged and did not get the job. I do not have a record of any kind and when I asked them regarding the red flag, they said they didn't know what the red flag was regarding. Please tell me what I should do to find out what my next step is.

Hannah in Los Angeles, California said: Quite the contrary. My positions required a great deal of trust and responsability and are high level positions hense the need for the occassional white lie.

I disagree I do not consider that to be a lack of ethics. I consider it having and using common sense. If I know I can do the job as well as or better then the next person I do use common sense in regards to obtaining the position.

I also have very high morals and work ethics and treat my positions as I would if I owned the companies myself hense my track record with amazing references and multiple employers trying to win me back after I decided to move on.

I do not take my career or my work lightly however I disagree with those that say that a person doing what they need to do to obtain a position under certain cirucmstances is such a bad thing. Many employers overlook fantastic potential employees based on what I consider many times to be silly criteria. That's my opinion.

Hannah I don't know you so for all I know you could be an amazing person but you don't see the irony/hypocrisy in recommending one tell white lies all while claiming to be an ethical person?

When I got hired at the market research firm that laid me off back in January, I had to have a background check for one of their projects. This company does telephone surveys for the Federal government. At the same time, they called me for another project where I didn't have to have a background check. Unfortunately, they finished up project where I had to have the background check.

I know it's hard, and it's a very rough job market, but let's face it; companies have to protect themselves. That's why they do background checks. They want somebody who is trustworthy and that's the bottom line.

Nansila private sector workers get off easy as long as you aren't a criminal and have decent credit you're good to go. It's crazy what extent the Federal government goes to grant just a simple SECRET security clearance. They check your medical records, interview past employers, ex wives/husbands, etc etc etc. Of course at a tremendous cost to you and I (taxpayers).

Over twenty years ago, I went to check out a temporary position with one of the banks here in Philadelphia. As part of their hiring process, they had to do a credit check on you. I refused to let them do this because I felt that my credit history was none of their business. I didn't know it then, but I sure know it now.

Let's face it: my credit history is terrible. Like millions of other people in this country, it was caused by periodic unemployment; as well as working at these part-time, low-paying, and temporary jobs with no benefits; making it very hard for me to pay my rent and bills. Since I'm on SSDI, paying my rent now is no problem. But my other basic bills (cellphone, electric, and so forth) I can only pay on the third of the month, when my SSDI comes. When I was still working, I was able to pay them on time.

I won't even apply for a job where I have to handle money. I can't even handle my own money; let alone somebody else's. I guess now that my credit history is public information, so if they want to do a credit check; that's fine. It's better that they find out sooner than later.

rangatang in Loves Park, Illinois said: Just got a offer letter for a job but a contingency background check and drug test is required. I went and did my drug test and it is pending results right now, but my background check came back and have some discrepancies in the academic section. Looks like that I am 14 credits short in getting my Bachelors Degree while I thought I did have my degree, but they can verify my other school from which I had my Associates degree. Now the recruiter is red flagging this saying that I have documented that I have a bachelors degree, but the results states that I dont. I called the school about this and they told me that I dont hold a bachelors degree and that I am 14 credits short!! OMG!! Its been 5 years ago that I thought I completed this program, but looks like I may have to finish this up!

Does this look like a job that will be jeopardized or I may still have a slim chance in landing this? The Recruiter is currently reporting all this to her manager and will notify me with more details to come. I just hope it all works out well.

i thought school records were confidential?

Bernie Madoff
Michael Milken
Richard Fuld
Lloyd Blankfein
Jamie Dimon
Hank Paulson
Timothy Geithner
... and The Ben Bernanke

*ALL* would have passed any pre-employment background check thrown their way -- credit, references, criminal (except for Bernie lately).

So much for that flawed school of thought.

Ive been on umemplyment for a yr and got an offer of employment for the county i reside in, contingent on background check. Today i received an email (after i contacted them) from HR stating there was a discrepency in my background check on what they found vs what i stated. Honestly i didnt think i would get the job so after my interview i filled a piece of paper on background n put it in an envelope and gave it to them. After offering me the position HR said we will mail out your background check now. So here is the thing, i have a DUI from yrs ago and when asked if i had any prior convictions im sure i put down "no" b/c it usually says anything other then a traffic violation. Plus the job has nothing to do with driving. I REALLY NEED this job and want to know if there is ANY way i can salvage this and explain to HR that i didnt intend on lying. Pleeeeeeeeese help asap. They want a respone in a wk n the job starts o the 9th. Thanks in advance

BWD3 in Peachtree City, Georgia said: Bernie Madoff
Michael Milken
Richard Fuld
Lloyd Blankfein
Jamie Dimon
Hank Paulson
Timothy Geithner
... and The Ben Bernanke

*ALL* would have passed any pre-employment background check thrown their way -- credit, references, criminal (except for Bernie lately).

So much for that flawed school of thought.

You know the old HR joke? Even Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy and Jeffrey Dahmer had jobs. Ha!

I have had interviews where they request you to sign the background check document then, so I figure they will do it. I don't like to sign something where they just have it on file for later. Hopefully they are interested!

Fogcity Girl in San Francisco, California said: I have had interviews where they request you to sign the background check document then, so I figure they will do it. I don't like to sign something where they just have it on file for later. Hopefully they are interested!

Everybody has to consent to a background check but it is only done AFTER you have been interviewed and they have decided that you are a contender.

Matthew McKelvey in Clarksville, Tennessee said: I applied for a job and had my second interview, did the drug test and the interview was good. They were very pleased. HR said they would call me back and said they would contact me in a few days. I waited a week and called them. They said I was red flagged and did not get the job. I do not have a record of any kind and when I asked them regarding the red flag, they said they didn't know what the red flag was regarding. Please tell me what I should do to find out what my next step is.

You failed the drug test or it was too dilute.

I interviewed and received a written offer for the job based on a drug and background check. Drug test will be fine but I do have a few (two) dings on my credit report that are very old and getting ready to roll off as it's been almost 7 years. I also had a DWI 22 years ago, but I did put that on the application.

Should I be worrried??? All my other credit obligations are in good order and my credit score is high enough to receive credit cards again.

The position is not a "High" level position, but rather a foot in the door type of position with a company with lots of growth opportunities.

TB in NB in New Braunfels, Texas said: I interviewed and received a written offer for the job based on a drug and background check. Drug test will be fine but I do have a few (two) dings on my credit report that are very old and getting ready to roll off as it's been almost 7 years. I also had a DWI 22 years ago, but I did put that on the application.

Should I be worrried??? All my other credit obligations are in good order and my credit score is high enough to receive credit cards again.

The position is not a "High" level position, but rather a foot in the door type of position with a company with lots of growth opportunities.

I wouldn't worry about something that old. All of us have dings on our credit now.

Now if you are applying to the FBI, all bets are off. Heh!

When I was hired as a call center operator back in 1997, I had to take a drug test, which was no problem. I don't take, and would never even dream of taking, illegal drugs. I do, however, take prescription medication and I ask them about it.

As far as bad credit goes, they're going to have to refuse literally millions of people in this country jobs because nobody has "perfect" credit. Don't these companies realize that we're in a recession? Millions are people are losing their jobs; making it hard for them to pay their bills, and not their fault. So now I have to have "perfect" credit in order for me to get a job?

Employers today are living in a dream world. I've said it many times before and I'll say it again: companies today want the "perfect" person. Well there is no "perfect" person. Nobody's perfect. Only God is perfect.

Nanlisa in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania said: When I was hired as a call center operator back in 1997, I had to take a drug test, which was no problem. I don't take, and would never even dream of taking, illegal drugs. I do, however, take prescription medication and I ask them about it.

As far as bad credit goes, they're going to have to refuse literally millions of people in this country jobs because nobody has "perfect" credit. Don't these companies realize that we're in a recession? Millions are people are losing their jobs; making it hard for them to pay their bills, and not their fault. So now I have to have "perfect" credit in order for me to get a job?

Employers today are living in a dream world. I've said it many times before and I'll say it again: companies today want the "perfect" person. Well there is no "perfect" person. Nobody's perfect. Only God is perfect.

Heh! I had one interview where, I casually asked, when they thought their decision would be made? The interviewer smile at me and said, "We are in no hurry. With 3 million homeless people, I am sure we will find someone".

Many people have not been affected by The Great Recession and could care less about you.

That's brutal, Bluetea, but I've witnessed similar behavior in interviews. They just don't empathize at all.

I interviewed for a position in a a large biotech company last month. They contacted me in a week and said if my background check goes well, they will offer me a job. HR asked my salary requirement as well. Now it's been three weeks I have not heard back from them. I know I don't have any problem with my credit or any other legal violations. What chances do I have to get this job?

A background check can take as long as a month but I wouldn't wait around. Not only did they ask you what your salary requirements are - they ask 5 other applicants that quesiton.

What do you think they will base their decision on? Keep applying.