May 18, 2017 [corrected 2017-05-20 (see below)] | By Greg Fisher

A San Jose Mercury News (now the Mercury News) item contains false information about the United States of America. The piece refers to "House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi," but Pelosi has never had that title.

The editor will make a correction.

And, despite information in another article from the same news organization, employers do not use credit scores.

A representative for Transunion, a credit bureau, testified, "Now, credit scores aren't used in employment decisions so let’s get that straight."

A spokesman for the bureau Equifax said, "We do not knowingly provide scores for pre employment screening."

2010

To: Carole Leigh Hutton, president and CEO, United Way Silicon Valley
Cc: Mary Gottschalk, reporter, community-newspapers.com; Jim Dale, Financial Stability Partnership Manager, United Way Silicon Valley
From: Greg Fisher, greg@creditscoring.com
Date: Sunday, 2010-08-22
Subject: credit score, employers, United Way Silicon Valley

You said: "Credit scores are more important now than ever before. They are used by lenders, landlords and increasingly by employers to assess a person's worthiness, not only for credit or a loan, but also to rent a home or to get a job."

The consumer reporting agencies all state that they do not provide credit scores for employment purposes.

What evidence indicates that employers use credit scores?

What is the name of an employer who uses credit scores?

Greg Fisher
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio 45409-0342

To: Carole Leigh Hutton; Sal Fabens, United Way
Cc: Mary Gottschalk, reporter, community-newspapers.com; Jim Dale; letters@mercurynews.com; David J. Butler, editor and VP, San Jose Mercury News; Mac Tully, publisher, San Jose Mercury News
From: Greg Fisher
Sent: Monday, August 23, 2010 7:37 PM
Subject: RE: credit score, employers, United Way Silicon Valley II

Please reply.

From: Carole Leigh Hutton
To: 'greg@creditscoring.com'; Sal Fabens, United Way
Cc: Mary Gottschalk, reporter, community-newspapers.com; Jim Dale; letters@mercurynews.com; David J. Butler, editor and VP, San Jose Mercury News; Mac Tully, publisher, San Jose Mercury News
Sent: Monday, August 23, 2010 10:58 PM
Subject: RE: credit score, employers, United Way Silicon Valley II

Dear Mr. Fisher,

Typically, when a reputable employer requires a credit check it obtains the authorization of the job candidate. It can be difficult for a candidate to refuse. I have personally authorized a credit check for a position I sought.

Perhaps this link will help. In it you'll see that the practice is cited by human resources professionals as one that is quite common.

Regards,

Carole Leigh Hutton

Carole Leigh Hutton
President & CEO
United Way Silicon Valley
[phone]
[email]
www.uwsv.org

Register Now! United Way's Annual Community Breakfast and Campaign Kick-Off on September 15.
Featuring Keynote Speaker Bill Toliver. Sponsored By: Intel, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard and Wells Fargo

* [See https://web.archive.org/web/20100209012243/http://articles.moneycentral.msn.com/Banking/YourCreditRating/how-bad-credit-can-cost-you-a-job.aspx. The author, Liz Pulliam Weston (aka Liz Weston), spreads false information.]

From: Greg Fisher
To: Carole Leigh Hutton, president and CEO, United Way Silicon Valley; Sal Fabens, United Way
Cc: Mary Gottschalk, reporter, community-newspapers.com; Jim Dale, Financial Stability Partnership Manager, United Way Silicon Valley; letters@mercurynews.com; David J. Butler, editor and VP, San Jose Mercury News; Mac Tully, publisher, San Jose Mercury News
Sent: Monday, August 23, 2010 11:38 PM
Subject: RE: credit score, employers, United Way Silicon Valley, score, specifically

Your link is irrelevant and second-hand. It refers to credit history, but does not mention credit scores. One is a document which contains a list of accounts and their payment patterns, the other is an mere integer.

Since you cannot provide any evidence that employers use credit scores, are you going to retract your statement?

2015

To: Randall Keith, San Jose Mercury News
From: Greg Fisher
Sent: Monday, January 12, 2015 3:12 PM
Subject: RE: credit score, employers, United Way Silicon Valley, burden of proof

Employers do not use credit scores. I looked into it.

See what I found in 2008 at http://www.creditscoring.com/influence/government/employment.htm .

Anybody can claim anything.

--
Greg Fisher
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio 45409-0342
937-681-3224

From: Randall Keith, San Jose Mercury News
To: greg@creditscoring.com
Sent: Monday, January 12, 2015 3:28 PM
Subject: Re: credit score, employers, United Way Silicon Valley, burden of proof

thanks. we'll review.
randy

To: Randall Keith, San Jose Mercury News
From: Greg Fisher
Cc: Carole Leigh Hutton, president and CEO, United Way Silicon Valley
Sent: Monday, January 12, 2015 3:30 PM
Subject: FW: credit score, employers, United Way Silicon Valley, burden of proof

See below.

The statement is intact. http://www.mercurynews.com/san-jose-neighborhoods/ci_15841615

--
Greg Fisher
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio 45409-0342
937-681-3224

From: Greg Fisher
Sent: Monday, January 12, 2015 6:43 PM
To: Jane Le Fevre, United Way Silicon Valley
Subject: FW: credit score, employers, United Way Silicon Valley, burden of proof

--
Greg Fisher
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio 45409-0342
937-681-3224

2017

From: greg@truthandfalsity.com
Sent: Thursday, May 18, 2017 6:13 PM
To: Publisher, Mercury News, Digital First Media
Cc: Neil Chase, executive editor, Mercury News, Digital First Media
Subject: RE: credit score, employers, United Way Silicon Valley, burden of proof, minority

See this message at http://creditscoring.com/interaction/2017/05/18-mercury-news.html.

You published false information about the history of my country, the United States of America. Adrienne J. Tissier falsely wrote, "Working together with Congresswoman Jackie Speier and House Majority Leader Nancy Pelosi, Eshoo has helped rally federal support critical to the success of the project."

Pelosi has never been the majority leader.

You will make a correction.

--
Greg Fisher
Truth and Falsity
truthandfalsity.com
The Credit Scoring Site
creditscoring.com
PO Box 342
Dayton, Ohio 45409-0342
mobile/text 937-681-3224

Follow the activity of Items #1008a, #1703av and #1207f using those hashtags. #falsity - #Myth2 - #Error5

[Correction: A previous version of this article did not contain the sentence "Pelosi has never been the majority leader." - G. Fisher]