More and more, job seekers are taking the initiative to utilize web-based resources such as www.iamscreened.com to run personalized background checks on themselves prior to applying for positions of employment.
Many stories that you’ll hear of background check nightmares involve an error costing a prospective job candidate their chances at a dream job. But an error costing you your job once you’ve already settled in and started collecting a paycheck for your hard work? Is it possible?
Sadly enough, that’s exactly what the Baltimore Sun reported as happening to Eschol Amelia Studnitz who lost a $58K a year accounting job due to a background check discrepancy. Now unemployed, behind on mortgage payments and utility bills with still no resolution in sight for what should have been a quick fix, she wonders how this could have happened.
Studnitz was employed by Corporate Mail Services or “CMS” which had secured a mail handling contract with the Social Security Administration. Once employed, a standard background check screening returned “unsuitable.” Results that barred her from obtaining a level 1 security clearance required by all individuals working at the CMS Arbutus facility in Maryland.
Studnitzs’ shock was profound and the Sun quoted her as saying “I kept thinking, ‘What could I have done?’”
The Social Security Administration (SSA), within a week, realized it had made a mistake and contacted her employer CMS. The SSA stated that their decision had been reversed and that Mrs. Studnitz would be cleared to work on a new mailing handling contract. Unfortunately, it was too late.
Citing issues regarding her work performance and handling of the reinstatement process, CMS declined to restore Amelias position. three months later she now finds herself unemployed, in debt and feeling completely betrayed by her former employer: “I’ve never been let go, for one thing. And to be let go with a callous attitude. I was a good employee. [CMS] just completely wrote me off like a bad seed. It was surreal.”
Amelia now finds herself with limited legal options, a poor job market with few available opportunities and an uncertain future and all because of a minor glitch in the system. It’s a terribly unfair situation…could it happen to you?
It might seem like a one in a million situation chance but with background screenings having become an integral part of the hiring process, the potential for minor errors costing qualified individuals their jobs may become more commonplace.
Now, before you panic, you need to know that terminations based on mistakes on a background are very rare but they can happen. No individual has to remain powerless in the face of potential complications such as what Amelia Studnitz had dealt with.
More and more, job seekers are taking the initiative to utilize web-based resources such as www.IAmScreened.com to run personalized background checks on themselves prior to applying for positions of employment. Receiving your very own advance background screening allows you to ensure your personal data is accurate, up to date and uncompromised. By having a check run, any errors and mistakes can be caught and corrected prior to the official screening process. It’s like sweeping a road free of nails before you drive your car down it. After all, who wants a flat tire when their destination is in sight?
