Job Hunters Should Know Their Score

Why bad credit could cost you your next job.

If you are in the job market, your resume and experience may not be enough. More and more companies are looking at your credit score before hiring.

In the past, banks and financial service companies routinely ran credit checks as part of the screening process. Top sales executives and those requiring security clearances had their credit reports examined annually so that their employers felt comfortable with their money and debt management.

But now 35% of all companies are making credit checks a mandatory part of the application process. A bad credit score can send an otherwise well qualified job applicant straight to the unemployment line.

Why? For many reasons.

Credit scores have become the de facto "GPA" for all aspects of modern life. Companies are using credit checks as a general measure of your responsibility and organizational skills. If you can't manage your finances, how are you going to act and manage others?

Companies are also relying on credit scores because past employers, fearful of libel suits, are no longer as candid about the performance of former workers.

A credit report also contains a lot of information that may not be on a resume. For example, it contains a full legal name that employers can use to see if an applicant has changed their name to escape a checkered past. It also lists former employers who might not be named on a resume.

The prevailing view among many employers is that people with bad credit are irresponsible deadbeats. Even though they know there can be many contributing reasons such as identity theft, medical bills, or a layoff that was beyond their control, they still place the ultimate responsibility on applicants.

To make matters worse, 42 percent of people 18 and older have never even checked their score score. They have no idea if it's good, or bad, or what's in their file.

All of this is making it harder for people who are laid off, newly divorced or saddled with student loans to find good, well-paying full-time jobs.

The truth is, there are a lot of people who are just one paycheck away from financial disaster.

That's why the demand for credit repair is exploding.

There are over 80 million Americans who need help fixing their credit to get a good job, buy a home at favorable rates or rent an apartment in a safe part of town.