Job and Credit

[CowboyStar88]

So I am pretty bummed out... I had fallen on hard times the last couple of years from injurying my back and my nasty divorce so the credit cards were let go and the big car payments were turned in because keeping the lights on and food on the table was more important. Well I went back to work and I took a job just so I could continue putting food on the table, and It's about half of what I use to make so it's been a struggle. Well I had hoped my luck was changing after putting out resume after resume after resume etc... So I interview yesterday for a buyer/underwriter position and mind you my qualifications are steller for this position. I came with a plan and even put together a financial plan to help increase the total number of loans by just signing one particular client to the list. Needless to say the manager was impressed, so after the interview he walked me over to the HR dept. they gave me info to fill out and as I am reading thru this it talks about pulling my credit. I fill it all out and brought it to the HR dept. I asked the HR lady will this affect me and she said yes, so I quickly called the interviewing manager and explained to him what happened and I felt like I let him down. He said I was one of his finalists and he would let me know.

I am really down over this situation as I have always maintained good credit but fell on hard times even selling my boat that had been in my family for 15 years. I have a company working with me on my credit to clean it up. The told me they could give me a letter to give to the employer which I haven't told the HR dept yet. Currently I am a "partner" to this company so they all know me and I currently do some of the same things I would be doing for this company. I have no criminal record, clean drivers record never been fired not a drug addict and my skills for this position are exceptional. Has anyone faced anything similar? Is there anything I can do? Maybe help talk me off the ledge I am about to lose everything and this came along at the right time. So depressed and don't know what I am going to do now.

 

[Tabascocat]

Unfortunately, credit is everything now days

Just explain your situation to them and hope for the best, that is all you can really do. A lot will have to do with the credit report itself, i.e. foreclosures, repo's, etc, etc. Also, how much in debt you are will affect it. If some/most of the old bills are paid off, or at least shows payments, that is good. Looks like this is up to their discretion, just work with them and make a case for yourself. I would not stand by waiting for a decision, be proactive in constant communication with them.

When I was 26, I was denied entry into the HPD academy due to three bounced checks a couple of years prior. That was the only thing that kept me from becoming an officer, I met all of the other qualifications.

The way we are heading, we will need credit to pay with cash in the future!

 

[Reverend Conehead]

This kind of situation makes me so angry! It should be illegal for anyone to base hiring on credit history. Poor health overwhelmed me with medical bills that I could not pay, which messed up my credit. Like you I also have quality skills, but have had to be tripped up by bad credit in my job search. I can only hope there are others out there who feel like I do, including people who do hiring. If I were hiring I would ONLY be interested in people who are capable of doing the job and making the company profitable. There are plenty of good people like that with bad credit. Medical problems can trash your credit. So can being married to the wrong person. A friend of mine married a spendthrift wife who maxed out all their "emergency" credit cards and then bailed with someone else when there was nothing left to sponge. He was left with some 250K in delinquent debt.

 

[burmafrd]

just to play devil's advocate what about a police officer who is in deep debt- subject to a bribe? So there are cases where a credit history should have some bearing on being hired. Of course it is way over emphasized.

 

[Kevinicus]

This kind of situation makes me so angry! It should be illegal for anyone to base hiring on credit history. Poor health overwhelmed me with medical bills that I could not pay, which messed up my credit. Like you I also have quality skills, but have had to be tripped up by bad credit in my job search. I can only hope there are others out there who feel like I do, including people who do hiring. If I were hiring I would ONLY be interested in people who are capable of doing the job and making the company profitable. There are plenty of good people like that with bad credit. Medical problems can trash your credit. So can being married to the wrong person. A friend of mine married a spendthrift wife who maxed out all their "emergency" credit cards and then bailed with someone else when there was nothing left to sponge. He was left with some 250K in delinquent debt.

It shouldn't be illegal for anyone to base hiring on whatever reason they see fit. It's their business, their money, they should be able to hire, or not hire, whoever they want. If they miss out on good people because of it, then that's their problem.

 

[Ren]

I'm glad i live in a country where stuff like this is still considered privacy

 

[CashMan]

I'm glad i live in a country where stuff like this is still considered privacy

I would assume, in the finance world, they do not want somebody loaning out money or making financial decisions for their customers, by people who have made bad financial decisions themselves? Nothing against the OP, but that's my guess.

 

[ROUSH8692]

I would assume, in the finance world, they do not want somebody loaning out money or making financial decisions for their customers, by people who have made bad financial decisions themselves? Nothing against the OP, but that's my guess.

Why nothing against the OP? Ive been through a divorce and I have awesome credit....

 

[CashMan]

Why nothing against the OP? Ive been through a divorce and I have awesome credit....

It happens, your situation might of been very different than his. for all you know, his wife racked up some large bills, decided not to pay them, he might of not had the money by himself and bad credit happened. But then again, I do not feel bad, about him not being able to not get a job in the financial field with bad credit.

 

[Kangaroo]

The military will deny you certain MOS if you have bad credit and certain level of security clearnace because they think you may be more prone to selling secrets etc.

Knew a guy in the Army denied an MOS because of credit and had to switch to a different MOS.

 

[ROUSH8692]

It happens, your situation might of been very different than his. for all you know, his wife racked up some large bills, decided not to pay them, he might of not had the money by himself and bad credit happened. But then again, I do not feel bad, about him not being able to not get a job in the financial field with bad credit.

Did you read this? Its crazy to see someone make such a sacrifice nowadays to save their credit rating. Most just don't pay.

http://finance.yahoo.com/news/duke-...d-in-a-van-to-escape-loan-debt-194021112.html

 

[Reverend Conehead]

It shouldn't be illegal for anyone to base hiring on whatever reason they see fit. It's their business, their money, they should be able to hire, or not hire, whoever they want. If they miss out on good people because of it, then that's their problem.

It's already illegal to refuse to hire based on reasons outlined in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It's illegal to refuse to hire based on advanced age. We should add poverty to that list. Refusing to hire based on bad credit is just yet more oppression of the poor. It's an unjust assumption that someone has been irresponsible with money when the truth might be they have bad credit through no fault of their own. People who need money might be quality workers. Imagine that.

And I've never bought the argument that someone who owns his own business can do whatever the heck he wants because it's his business. That's not true. There are limits. He doesn't have the right to fondle his female coworkers. He doesn't have the right to break fire codes. He doesn't have the right to pay less than minimum wage.

Hiring based on credit scores is un-American. We're supposed to be a country that encourages working hard and climbing the economic ladder. Using credit scores is saying, "Poor people deserve to stay poor." We should be a country in which hiring and promotion is done based on abilities and performance ONLY.

 

[CowboyMcCoy]

It's already illegal to refuse to hire based on reasons outlined in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It's illegal to refuse to hire based on advanced age. We should add poverty to that list. Refusing to hire based on bad credit is just yet more oppression of the poor. It's an unjust assumption that someone has been irresponsible with money when the truth might be they have bad credit through no fault of their own. People who need money might be quality workers. Imagine that.

And I've never bought the argument that someone who owns his own business can do whatever the heck he wants because it's his business. That's not true. There are limits. He doesn't have the right to fondle his female coworkers. He doesn't have the right to break fire codes. He doesn't have the right to pay less than minimum wage.

Hiring based on credit scores is un-American. We're supposed to be a country that encourages working hard and climbing the economic ladder. Using credit scores is saying, "Poor people deserve to stay poor." We should be a country in which hiring and promotion is done based on abilities and performance ONLY.

Very well said.

 

[NorthTexan95]

I ran into a similar situation where I lost my IT job when the market crashed around 2000. A few years later I was applying for an IT job at a credit union and HR asked about it. I told them what had happened and that was good enough for them.

Fortunately, credit history can be cleaned up and go away unlike a criminal history. Unfortunately, it takes time for it to be cleared up.

 

[TheDude]

My really good friend was in the exact same situation in 2006. HUge custody battle, $100K legal bill, perfect credit went down crapper etc.

He had to file a bankruptcy, but has not had it impact his jobs at all . When signing off on the credit report, he noted to the HR department about his issues and he was able to move onto 2 different banks. They never even asked.

When you get extra money, try writing to the creditors and asking for a pay for delete letter, or if it is an auto or house and you still have it. Ask for a goodwill delete if you make 6 consecutive payments. Go to myfico fourms or credit boards.com there are example letters (DO NOT CALL - you will get a flat no from low level collectors).

If it were me, I would not get overly defensive and state that you had some life issues that have not been uncommon in the last 5 years. You are taking responsibility as best you can and have a are back on solid footing. It may also be worth putting a comment in your report at the three credit bureaus. Simple description about divorce or medical (which are leading causes of a BK)

I don't think it is a dealbreaker. Only commodity trading and positions where bribes are a real threat (police, national security, etc) are the only ones that have a no tolerance policy.

Good luck

 

[CowboyStar88]

Why nothing against the OP? Ive been through a divorce and I have awesome credit....

It's not just a divorce I broke my back and was unable to work. So when I went on disability it took 2 months to pay and it was only 50% of my pay. So it was either pay the electric bill and put food on the table or pay a credit card. As stated I made sacrifices as in selling my boat and turning my truck that I loved and put a large down payment on just so I could survive. Before my divorce my ex became addicted to pain killers and she is an RN. Well she was writing checks against a closed account to buy drugs. I have her money to pay bills and she was buying drugs. I had to payoff the account and catch up the bills. I did everything I could. I am in the process of fixing everything now. But because of the job I am in and the money I make now I am
Unable to afford everything now. I use to make great money and use to living a certain life style. I've had to change that because of my situation. I have no problem changing how I live since I've done it already. My point is I've worked hard to get this opportunity and put a lot of effort into my interview just to lose it because of what has happened.

 

[burmafrd]

It's already illegal to refuse to hire based on reasons outlined in the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It's illegal to refuse to hire based on advanced age. We should add poverty to that list. Refusing to hire based on bad credit is just yet more oppression of the poor. It's an unjust assumption that someone has been irresponsible with money when the truth might be they have bad credit through no fault of their own. People who need money might be quality workers. Imagine that.

And I've never bought the argument that someone who owns his own business can do whatever the heck he wants because it's his business. That's not true. There are limits. He doesn't have the right to fondle his female coworkers. He doesn't have the right to break fire codes. He doesn't have the right to pay less than minimum wage.

Hiring based on credit scores is un-American. We're supposed to be a country that encourages working hard and climbing the economic ladder. Using credit scores is saying, "Poor people deserve to stay poor." We should be a country in which hiring and promotion is done based on abilities and performance ONLY.

and you need to understand better the real world where a lot of things are nowhere near as neat and clean as you try and make it.

Fact is that someone deep in debt is a risk as a hire - because of many factors not all to due with just debt.

That person will have stress factors beyond normal
Risk factors beyond normal

If I was running a business I would have to think hard about hiring someone deep in debt; common sense tells you that

 

[MichaelWinicki]

Using credit scores is saying, "Poor people deserve to stay poor." We should be a country in which hiring and promotion is done based on abilities and performance ONLY.

There are a lot of so called "rich" people that have terrible credit scores too.

If anything I think the ones with lower incomes are better at managing their money than the ones higher up the ladder, mostly because they've lost that inclination to "Be one of the Jones" (not Jerry... Well maybe ).

Many live beyond their means in order to keep-up & go beyond others in their social circle. They believe that "stuff" equals success and creates envy.

And then you have the whole real estate market collapse which drilled the credit scores of millions.

 

[big dog cowboy]

It shouldn't be illegal for anyone to base hiring on whatever reason they see fit. It's their business, their money, they should be able to hire, or not hire, whoever they want. If they miss out on good people because of it, then that's their problem.

 

[TheDude]

I agree that it is the prerogative for a business to hire or not hire based on certain criteria (i.e. not race, age etc.) but credit score is a very slippery slope.

If a 720 FICO is requirement for employment, it should be stated as such. If an employer uses it to say that they are concerned because over the last 10 years a person has been late on every account over a long haul. That is different than someone who hit an incredible rough patch in life and have a 6month run off new credit problems from illness or divorce that score the same as a the aforementioned person.

Most of the decisioning anymore in banking is a brightline - ex: 719 is a no and 720 is a yes. It is desktop underwritten with no discussion for a persons situation. If employment becomes that way, it is a rough precedent. You could conceivably have employers fire you because you had 1 late payment 1 time in your life.

Im all about responsibility, but I have seen too many friends get slaughtered from a divorce - lawyer fee, court costs, aliminoy, child support, paying off wife's credit cards, etc. Not to mention if someone contracts a high cost illness - cancer, kidney failure, etc.

You have 3 companies.agencies that control your life indirectly. Even if 1 of the three have one error, you can get denied a loan, increased insurance rates, refusal of employment, etc. It really is potentially scary situation long term.