How do I find and access what prospective employers see when they do a background check? Also, need to find out exact dates of previous companies I have worked for. Has to be a way without paying a service to do it ($40). Aany suggestions? All help appreciated !

dvqjimbo1

Background checks are done through a variety of companies that compile public info... so included are usually credit reports, police records, rental records, court records, etc.

There is not, though, a reliable employment database that a majority of employers report to.

To find out dates you worked for someone, you will need to contact each of your employers in writing asking for your dates of employments. This is not in a data base with exact dates.

And most of the info they will find about you, you should already know.
Bad debts, late pays who you owe money to, they can find out about your past employment by contacting them. They will run a criminal history and find out about any convictions.

... just one thing I thought of to add: If your previous employment was in a position where you must be licensed, then in that case the agency or agencies that those licenses were through would have some record.

There is this myth that anyone can find out all about a person on the Internet. While there is a significant amount of info is one searches, its not all there.

Companies that perform background checks pay for the service. Work is done by investigators (depending on the depth of the check). These investigations use info you provided. So they may check previous employers by simply calling for an employment check.

You can get a copy of your credit bureau report, which is usually part of such a check. But anything more would depend on the company doing the check and how in depth a check they were contracted to do.

But your question raises one in my mind. WHY do you need to know? Do you plan on falsifying or even leaving things out of your resume? If so, I would forget it. As long as you are honest in your resume and application, then you have nothing to be concerned about.