What Shows Up on a Background Check in Wisconsin?

Employers frequently run background checks on prospective employees in Wisconsin to verify their identities and see any criminal records. The Department of Justice ran more than 900,000 of them in 2017 alone. The results of a criminal background check can show:

• • Past felony and misdemeanor convictions
• • Arrests and pending charges
• • Information from the court proceedings
• • Sentencing information

What impact do background checks have in Wisconsin?

Generally, employers are not allowed to discriminate against applicants based on criminal history unless the crime directly relates to the job. For example, an employer can refuse to hire someone as a truck driver who has had an OWI charge since it directly relates to the job duties.\

Wisconsin has the Wisconsin Fair Employment Act, which bans employers from requiring applicants to disclose arrests that did not result in convictions. The law also prohibits employers from discriminating against applicants based on an arrest record unless the arrest is pending and is directly related to a job.

What can I do if my identity was misused?

Most employers run name-only background checks, meaning the results for someone with a similar name or someone who unlawfully used your name could show up in a background check. If you feel this is the case, you can challenge a criminal record through the Wisconsin Department of Justice.

Unfortunately, many employers let the results of background checks impact their hiring decisions, legal or not.

If you feel you were unlawfully denied employment due to a criminal background check, contact the team at Tracey Wood & Associates today.