The EEOC has held public hearings on an employer’s use of credit reports as a tool with which to screen applicants. Jon Hyman at Ohio Employment Blog discussed one such hearing. See Jon’s blog post. Employers say credit histories help them screen clients and protect against fraud. Employees, especially in this economy, are concerned that poor credti history may unfairly keep them from a job. The representative from the US Chamber of Commrece says employers take individual situations into account and do not abuse the practice.
According to one credit agency, Experian, employers never see credit scores, just the histories. See Jon’s post for more info.