Walmart Background Check

Does Walmart do background checks? If you’re hoping to get hired by Walmart, you’ll have to pass the Walmart background check.

Like most large companies these days, Walmart screens all potential employees to make sure that they hire the right people.

Walmart has a responsibility to its customers, staff, and shareholders to operate a safe workplace. Because of this, they won’t take a risk and hire people with unsuitable backgrounds.

Undergoing a background check can be a stressful experience and this is most often the case when you’re burdened with a criminal record.

Knowing what a background check will uncover can minimize that stress, and understanding the background check process can help you to decide if you should make an application with a particular company.

Let’s find out how the Walmart background check works.

When Does Walmart Do A Background Check?

Walmart will run a background check on you after they have made a conditional job offer.

They don’t carry out the background check themselves, preferring to use a third-party background checking company called BackgroundChecks.com.

When you receive a conditional job offer, Walmart will give you instructions for submitting your details to BackgroundChecks.com

Make sure you keep an eye on your email so you don’t miss the background check request. Check your junk or spam folder if you don’t see the email.

What Information Shows Up On Walmart’s Background Check?

For most positions, Walmart will want to run a basic background check.

The background check will verify your personal information and make sure that the social security number you provided matches your name and date of birth. Your report will also confirm your employment record.

Additionally, the background checking agency will make a search of federal, state, and county databases looking for criminal records.

The criminal record information that they will report to Walmart includes:

• Arrests
• Charges and pending charges
• Outstanding warrants
• Misdemeanor convictions
• Felony convictions
• Incarceration dates
• Probation records
• Parole dates

They may also check your driving record.

How Far Back Does Walmart’s Background Check Go?

Federal and state laws govern how far background checks are allowed to go.

Pre-employment background checks are actually a type of consumer credit report and, as such, they are regulated at the federal level by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

Under the FCRA, credit reporting agencies are only permitted to report your records over the last 7 years for most classes of information.

The 7-year rule does not, however, apply to felony convictions. Felonies can be reported no matter how many years have passed since the offense was committed unless states have set their own limits.

States Which Put A Time Limit On Background Reports

Some states have passed laws to make it easier for people with a criminal past to find employment.

While many employers take the view that past behavior is a good indicator of future behavior, lawmakers in 13 states have taken a different view.

These states realize that past mistakes shouldn’t unfairly limit ex-felons chance of building a life once they’ve served their sentence.

The following states limit the reporting of all offenses, including felonies, to 7 years:

• California
• Colorado
• Kansas
• Kentucky
• Maryland
• Massachusetts
• Montana
• Nevado
• New Hampshire
• New Mexico
• New York
• Texas
• Washington

How Long Does the Walmart Background Check Take?

Walmarts background checks can take anywhere from a couple of days to 3 weeks. It all depends on how busy the background checking company is and how many state databases they need to run your report through.

They are usually pretty quick though, and you should know how you got on within a few days.

Once you pass your background check, Walmart will contact you to arrange your orientation session.

If you didn’t pass your background check and they decide that they can’t hire, they will let you know.

What Happens If You Don’t Pass Walmart’s Background Check?

If you fail your Walmart background check because the information that you provided during your application doesn’t match the information on record, or because of your criminal record, then Walmart has to follow the specific procedure required by the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

The First Step Is Sending You A Pre Adverse Action Notice

The pre-adverse action notice must include a copy of your background report and a summary of your rights under the FCRA.

Upon receiving this notice, you should carefully check the information in your background report for errors.

Background checking companies are not infallible and they are known to make mistakes.

• Sometimes they include records that relate to another person sharing the same name.
• Sometimes a person has fallen victim to identity theft.
• Sometimes they may inadvertently include information that they are legally prohibited from including.

You will be given a period of time to respond to the pre-adverse action notice. And if you find any mistakes in your report, then you must follow the directions in the notice to address the discrepancies. This time period is usually a minimum of 5 days.

If you don’t respond in time, or if Walmart decides that the background check is accurate, then you will receive an adverse action notice.

What Happens When You Get An Adverse Action Notice?

The adverse action notice means that Walmart has decided to withdraw its job offer because of your background report.

The notice will offer you another chance to dispute your background report and will allow you to obtain another copy of your background report within 60 days.

Unless you wish to dispute your background report, then your current job application with Walmart is over.

If your background report contained incorrect information that you were unable to correct, you should seek legal advice.

Another avenue you can explore that could help you in the future is finding out if any of the offenses on your record are eligible for expungement.

If an offense is expunged from your record, then it can no longer be reported and won’t cost you a job in the future.

Does Walmart Do A Drug Test Before They Hire?

Walmart doesn’t require a pre-hire drug test for most positions. But if the job you’re applying for is a safety-sensitive position, then you may have to pass a drug test.

When you make your application for a specific job, any drug testing requirement should be listed.

Examples of Walmart roles that may require a drug test are firearms sales, pharmacy positions, and auto center jobs.

If you are asked to take a drug test, it won’t happen at your interview, but you could be sent to take one the same day, so take that into account and make sure you apply and interview when you know you don’t have drugs in your system.

Even though you usually won’t need to pass a drug test before you can start work at Walmart, you should know that their drug testing policy allows for random drug testing, reasonable cause drug testing, and post-incident drug testing.

Walmart uses urine testing to screen for drugs and the substances they test for are:

• Marijuana
• Cocaine
• Amphetamines
• Opiates
• Phencyclidine (PCP)

Can I Work At Walmart With A Felony?

Walmart has hired felons in the past and they review all applications on a case-by-case basis.

Having a felony on your record won’t automatically disqualify you from joining the Walmart team, but the type of felony conviction you have will determine whether Walmart will want to hire you.

Generally, the type of offenses that will be problematic for Walmart include:

• Theft
• Weapons related crimes
• Sexual offences
• Drug dealing
• Fraud
• Violent crimes

If your felony was some time ago and you have a clean record since then with some good employment history, Walmart may decide that they can hire you.

When you submit information for your background check, you should answer questions about your convictions honestly. There’s no point claiming that you don’t have any convictions because the background check will discover them.

While Walmart may decide to hire you with a felony, they won’t hire you if you gave them false information.

Will Walmart Hire Me With A Misdemeanor?

Misdemeanors can only be reported for a period of 7 years on a background check. If your misdemeanor is older than 7 years, then it won’t have an impact on your application because the background checking company can’t tell Walmart about it.

With a more recent misdemeanor, it will depend on the type of offense.

If your misdemeanor was for theft, then that will be a red flag for Walmart and they will usually decide not to hire you.

If your misdemeanor was for a traffic offense, then that probably won’t be an issue unless you’ve applied for a driving job.

Frequent-Asked Questions (FAQs)

What Does Walmart Look For In A Background Check?

Walmart will look at your records for the last 7 years unless you have a felony conviction in which case there is no time limit on the search. The background check will look at any criminal history you have and your employment record. The check will also verify your personal information and your social security number.

What Will Fail A Walmart Background Check?

When Walmart receives your background check report, they will probably not want to hire you if you have a history of theft, dealing drugs, violent behavior, sexual offenses, or any weapons-related charges.

If your job will involve operating a motor vehicle, then DUI or DWI convictions, reckless driving charges, and speeding tickets will usually be a problem.

Does Walmart Really Do Background Checks?

Yes, they do. Walmart, like most other large companies, carries out background checks on all prospective employees.

Your background check will take place after a conditional job offer has been made. You may also need to pass a drug test for some safety-sensitive positions.

How Do I Know If I Passed My Background Check For Walmart?

If you pass your background check, Walmart will contact you to let you know and to set your orientation date. They’ll send you a text or an email with the information you need to know.

If you’re concerned that your check is taking too long, you can get in touch with their hiring department to find out what’s causing the delay. Walmart will also contact you if you failed the background check.

Summing Up

Walmart carries out a background check on all prospective new hires once a conditional job offer has been made.

They will check various databases to confirm your identity and social security number, and to discover any criminal offenses you may have committed.

The background check report will only include information from the last 7 years unless you have a felony conviction.

If you have a felony conviction, there is no time limit on reporting your offense. Walmart will look at the nature of your offense and how long ago it occurred when they make their hiring decision.

Offenses that will usually mean you’ve failed the Walmart background check include theft, sexual offenses, violence, weapons-related crimes, and drug dealing.

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