Tag: believers

@Experian can’t make up its mind on employers using credit scores

While the head of Experian (the sheriff of Nottingham) continues his 2-year resignation, the consumer reporting agency remains internally conflicted regarding the urban legend that employers use credit scores.

The San Francisco Chronicle reports, (Experian spokeswoman Susan) “Henson says the report Experian provides to employers excludes some information given to lenders, such as a credit score, year of birth, any reference to a spouse and “any account numbers not relevant to the hiring decision.'”

Experian, itself, states, “Experian’s Employment Insight report includes similar information about loans and credit cards that is listed in the credit report. It does not include year of birth, spouse reference, account number or credit score, which are irrelevant to hiring decisions” (click on “Bad credit doesn’t impact candidates getting hired.”).

Experian also says: “Employers never get a credit score. Unfortunately, that is a very common misperception” (click on “Do employers actually pull the credit report from the credit reporting company or do they pull just the score?”).

However, elsewhere, Experian says (tweets, actually), http://mashable.com/2011/08/09/linkedin-profile-job-search/ to help get you closer to that job offer (the one that requires a background check complete with credit score!).

And here’s another doozy (as reported by creditscoring.com) from Experian: “More Employers Check Applicants’ Credit Scores.”

Wassup Sheriff Knightman?

creditscoring.com beats Federal Reserve again

Trend (views)

(+103) creditscoring.com:

1993 – 2005 – 2027 – 2540 – 2672 – 2702 – 2805

(+58) The Federal Reserve:

554 – 643 – 716 – 1109 – 1194 – 1207 – 1265

(+101) – creditscoring.com (Video 2):

161 – 207 – 308

News tip on a silver platter: Experian uses the jobs and credit scores myth again

First, Experian gets blasted by a U.S. senator and the FTC over its goofy FreeCreditReport.com ads.

Next, in a brilliant, original marketing strategy, Experian creates a whole new thing (with another band) at FreeCreditScore.com.

Then, on August 9, from its FreeCreditScore.com Twitter account, Experian tweets

http://mashable.com/2011/08/09/lin… to help get you closer to that job offer (the one that requires a background check complete with credit score!).

[direct link to the Tweet: http://twitter.com/#!/FCSdotcom/status/100998248868741120]

Meanwhile, John Peace, the guy in charge (who just passed the second anniversary of his resignation), is knighted.

Journalists, news organizations, bloggers (at least the ones with guts)–here’s your chance.  Your question for Experian: What job offer requires a credit score?

Ask it, and then just step back and let the fun begin!

But wait, there’s more.  And, even more.  And more, still.

[Direct link to the Tweet:

Fox corrects, then repeats, credit score employers myth

In November, Adam Levin, chairman and co-founder of Credit.com and former director of the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs appeared on something from the Fox Business Network called FBN Live.  

Levin said, “Employers are not allowed–nor do they–look at credit scores; that’s an urban myth.” (37:00)

Interviewer Tracy Byrnes responds: “Wait! Can you say that again? So, in theory, your employer is not supposed to look at your score?”

Levin explains that credit reports for employment purposes do not even contain credit scores.

However, the title of the web page for the video is “Don’t Let Your Credit Score Hurt Your Job Hunt – We take a look at how a bad credit score could hurt your job prospects.”

And, last month, in a conversation about about money and human emotion, the Fox Business host had this exchange with an author and “CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER™ professional” who has a “passion for helping people”* (1:45):

GUEST:  It’s a stressful time.

HOST: Well, especially because, now, you know, you go for a new job and your new employer’s looking at your credit score. 

GUEST: Yes!

HOST:  It’s everywhere.

GUEST:  Agh! 

HOST: Right?

GUEST: It’s true.  It’s true.

The web page for that video is titled, “Emotions Behind Our Financial Decisions – Financial advisor and author Karen Lee offers insight into understanding the emotions behind our financial decisions.”

But another unfortunate action brings the circus full-circle.  Even Credit.com states: “Your credit score is a determining factor in your mortgage and auto loan terms, credit card rates and insurance premiums. Some employers and landlords also take your score into consideration.”

*see all the clichés: “passion,” “helping people,” etc.

SCORE UPDATE: creditscoring.com increases lead over Fed

creditscoring.com gained 30 (+46 for Video 2) views while the Cleveland Fed only increased by 13.

Trend

creditscoring.com:

1993 – 2005 – 2027 – 2540- 2672 – 2702

The Federal Reserve:

554 – 643 – 716 – 1109 – 1194 – 1207

creditscoring.com (Video 2):

161 – 207

SCORE UPDATE: creditscoring.com leads Fed

Here’s the latest score in terms of views:

creditscoring.com:  2672 (says that credit buraus do not sell scores for employment purposes)

The Federal Reserve:  1194 (says employers, indeed, use credit scores)

creditscoring.com: 161 (says that the idea that employers use scores is a myth)

Trend

creditscoring.com:

1993 – 2005 – 2027 – 2540- 2672

The Federal Reserve:

554 – 643 – 716 – 1109 – 1194

creditscoring.com:

161

[previous update]

credit score, employers, Reuters, 2011-05-23

From: Greg Fisher [mailto:greg@creditscoring.com]
Sent: Monday, May 23, 2011
To: John Wasik, columnist, Reuters
Subject: credit score, employers, Reuters, 2011-05-23

See this message and your response at https://blog.creditscoring.com/?p=2116 and https://blog.creditscoring.com/?tag=thomson-reuters.

You wrote, “Potential employers and insurance companies also check credit scores, so your FICO is a keystone to your future security as well.”

Who is your source regarding credit score use by employers?

—
Greg Fisher
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio  45409-0342

[UPDATE 2011-12-02: See Canada Day]

credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal

From: Greg Fisher [mailto:greg@creditscoring.com]
Sent: Sunday, May 22, 2011 4:33 PM
To: Emily Glazer, reporter, Wall Street Journal
Subject: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal

See this message and your response at https://blog.creditscoring.com/?p=2114.  

You wrote, “A credit score also is used when you apply for an apartment lease and even for some jobs.”

Who is your source regarding credit score use by employers?

—
Greg Fisher
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio  45409-0342

UPDATE, 2011-06-22

From: Greg Fisher [mailto:greg@creditscoring.com] 
Sent: Tuesday, May 24, 2011 12:57 PM
To: Glazer, Emily
Cc: Everett, Teri M. ( NewsCorp )
Subject: RE: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal

Please reply.

From: Glazer, Emily 
Sent: Tuesday, May 24, 2011 5:52 PM
To: ‘greg@creditscoring.com‘
Cc: Everett, Teri M. ( NewsCorp )
Subject: RE: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal

Hi Greg,

Thanks for reading the article and reaching out. I apologize for my delayed reply – I went through my inbox and I never received your original email.

A number of sources, including Alexa von Tobel from personal-finance website LearnVest.com, had mentioned that some employers check your credit score. This is most prevalent with various background searches during job interviews as a low score could put you at a hiring disadvantage.

Cheers,
Emily

From: Greg Fisher [mailto:greg@creditscoring.com] 
Sent: Thursday, June 02, 2011 12:29 AM
To: Glazer, Emily
Subject: RE: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal, LearnVest

LearnVest.com states, “While employers cannot access credit scores, they are given a history of missed bill payments, debts, and bankruptcies.”

How did you obtain the information you attribute to Ms. von Tobel?

From: Glazer, Emily 
Sent: Thursday, June 02, 2011 10:15 AM
To: ‘greg@creditscoring.com‘
Subject: RE: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal, LearnVest

Hi Greg,

The information was obtained through a phone interview. We wrote “and even for some jobs” because it depends on the company.

Thank you,
Emily

From: Greg Fisher [mailto:greg@creditscoring.com] 
Sent: Thursday, June 02, 2011 11:21 AM
To: Alexa von Tobel, CEO & founder, LearnVest
Cc: Emily Glazer, reporter, Wall Street Journal
Subject: FW: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal, LearnVest

What indicates that employers use credit scores?

—
Greg Fisher
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio  45409-0342

On Jun 3, 2011, at 11:54 AM, Greg Fisher wrote:

Please reply.

From: Maria Lin
Sent: Monday, June 06, 2011 10:19 AM
To: greg@creditscoring.com
Cc: Alexa von Tobel, CEO & founder, LearnVest; Ann Kaplan, chair of the board, LearnVest; Emily Glazer, reporter, Wall Street Journal
Subject:Re: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal, LearnVest II

Hello Greg:

According to one source, the Society for Human Resource Management, 43% of their companies ran credit checks on some or all potential hires according to a poll they conducted a few years ago.

Links to a few of their reports are below.

http://www.shrm.org/Research/SurveyFindings/Articles/Pages/Backroundcheckingcomparative.aspx

http://www.shrm.org/Research/SurveyFindings/Articles/Pages/BackgroundCheckingImplications.aspx

Please feel free to reach out to them directly to confirm the answers to your questions.

Best regards,

Maria

~ 
Maria Lin
Editor in Chief
Learnvest, Inc.
740 Broadway, Suite 1002
New York, NY 10012
xxx.xxx.xxxx (office)
xxx.xxx.xxxx (cell)
xxx.xxx.xxxx (fax)

From: Greg Fisher [mailto:greg@creditscoring.com]
Sent: Monday, June 06, 2011 12:25 PM
To: Glazer, Emily
Cc: Alexa von Tobel, CEO & founder, LearnVest; Ann Kaplan, chair of the board, LearnVest; Maria Lin, editor in chief, Learnvest, Inc.
Subject:RE: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal, LearnVest II

SHRM told me that its survey does not address credit scores.

What correction will you make?

From: Hughes, Jennifer 
Sent: Thursday, April 09, 2009 5:04 PM
To: creditscoring.com
Subject: RE: credit score, employers III

Hi Greg,

Neither survey discusses credit scores, only credit checks.

Sorry!

Thanks,
Jenny

Jennifer Hughes
Media Affairs Specialist
Society for Human Resource Management
1800 Duke Street
Alexandria, VA 22314-3499
Phone: xxx-xxx-xxxx

E-mail: xxxx@xxxx.xxx
www.shrm.org

 HR Leadership for the New Economy.  Only at the SHRM Annual Conference & Exposition.
June 28 – July 1, 2009 | New Orleans, La.
Find out more at www.shrm.org/conferences/annual.
—————————————-

From: creditscoring.com [mailto:greg@creditscoring.com]
Sent: Thursday, April 09, 2009 4:45 PM
To: Hughes, Jennifer
Subject: RE: credit score, employers III

Thank you.

What are the survey results regarding credit scores (a single number calculated from a person’s credit history), specifically?

Do any of the survey questions use the term “credit score”?
—————————————-

At 11:31 AM 4/9/2009, Hughes, Jennifer wrote:

Hi Greg,

According to SHRM’s 2006 Weapons in the Workplace Survey, 42% of surveyed employers run credit checks on potential employees as part of routine background checks. In SHRM’s 2004 Reference and Background Checking Survey, 19% of surveyed employers said they always used credit checks as a type of information in a background check, 24% sometimes used credit checks, and 18% rarely used credit checks.

If you have any other questions, let me know.

Thanks,
Jenny

Jennifer Hughes
Media Affairs Specialist
Society for Human Resource Management
1800 Duke Street
Alexandria, VA 22314-3499
Phone: xxx-xxx-xxxx
E-mail: xxxx@xxxx.xxx
www.shrm.org
 
HR Leadership for the New Economy.  Only at the SHRM Annual Conference & Exposition.
June 28 – July 1, 2009 | New Orleans, La.
Find out more at www.shrm.org/conferences/annual.
—————————————-

From: creditscoring.com [ mailto:greg@creditscoring.com]
Sent: Thursday, April 09, 2009 10:39 AM
To: Malveaux, Julie; Harris, Jeanene; Hughes, Jennifer
Subject: RE: credit score, employers III
 
Do you claim that employers use credit scores?

From: Glazer, Emily
Sent: Monday, June 06, 2011 12:54 PM
To: ‘greg@creditscoring.com’
Subject:RE: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal, LearnVest II

Thanks for pointing this out, Greg. I’m going to talk with my editor and will get back to you.

Cheers,
Emily

From: Alexa von Tobel
Sent: Friday, June 03, 2011 8:42 PM
To: greg@creditscoring.com
Subject:Re: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal, LearnVest II

Greg, I am currently traveling out of the country for work, but happy to get back to you as soon as I have better access to email. Hope you are having a great weekend!
-Alexa

From: Greg Fisher [mailto:greg@creditscoring.com]
Sent: Friday, June 10, 2011 12:51 PM
To: Alexa von Tobel, CEO & founder, LearnVest
Cc: Ann Kaplan, chair of the board, LearnVest; Maria Lin, editor in chief, Learnvest, Inc.; Emily Glazer, reporter, Wall Street Journal
Subject:RE: credit score, employers, Wall Street Journal, LearnVest II

When do you return?

Credit score, employers and Minyanville


From: Greg Fisher
Sent: Monday, May 09, 2011
To: Todd Harrison, founder and CEO, Minyanville Media, Inc.
Cc: Conor Sen, “Professor,” Minyanville
Subject: credit score, employers, Minyanville

See this message and your response at https://blog.creditscoring.com/?p=2077.

You published, “There was a time when we’d apply for a job or an apartment or a mortgage and not have to worry about a credit score.”

Who is your source regarding credit score use by employers?

—
Greg Fisher
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio  45409-0342

Myth: Employers use credit scores (video) – National Financial Literacy Month

National Financial Literacy Month – Video illustrates myth that employers use credit scores

creditscoring.com video shows media, experts, central bank and legislators furthering the myth that employers use credit scores in hiring decisions.

Myth: Employers use credit scores
Myth video: Employers use credit scores