A former furniture broker in Southern California, she has been unemployed for two years, sending out hundreds of resumes to no avail. She said about a third of those employers have asked her permission to run a credit check. It's information she'd rather not volunteer. Still, she always says yes, figuring companies will reject her outright if she doesn't cooperate.
Novak, who recently moved into her parents' Laguna Woods home, said she wasn't sure if her credit problems alone have cost her employment. But she resents the notion that a checkered report flags her as a potential thief.
"Give me a break -- I don't have a criminal record," said Novak, 57. "My expense reports are going to be squeaky clean. I'm not going to do anything to turn over the apple cart."
Many employers aren't willing to take that chance.
Companies and organizations lose a median of 5% of their annual revenue -- billions annually -- to employee fraud, according to the Assn. of Certified Fraud Examiners.
Asset misappropriations, including skimming from the till, pilfering equipment and the like, account for 90% of all cases.
The median loss -- half of businesses lose more, half lose less -- is $150,000 annually.
The Society for Human Resource Management estimates that 40% to 50% of employers, including the U.S. government, now run credit checks on potential hires.
Applicants for security officer positions at the Transportation Security Administration are ineligible for employment if a credit check turns up more than $7,500 in past-due debt, delinquent taxes or late child support payments.
Existing security officers must also pass random credit checks to keep their jobs.
"People are more concerned about who they're hiring today," said Norm Magnuson, a spokesman for the Consumer Data Industry Assn. "There's a more aggressive bar. If someone's going to be a teller in a bank or a clerk in a jewelry store, if they're overextended in their personal financial matters it might be a precursor to a moral hazard."
Most companies pull reports produced for them by one of the major credit bureaus. Federal law permits employers to see if job prospects are paying their mortgages, credit cards and other bills on time.
But they're not allowed to see applicants' overall credit scores, and they must notify candidates if they were rejected because of their credit.
