Does FedEx hire people with felonies?

What FedEx has said

We found no FedEx statement on hiring people with criminal records, and FedEx is not on the Second Chance Business Coalition member list. At least one FedEx warehouse posting says applicants must pass a drug screen and a criminal background check. FedEx Ground delivery drivers who work for independent service provider companies are hired by those companies, not by FedEx, so their screening is set by the service provider.

We didn't find a public statement from FedEx about hiring people with records: not on its careers site, in its reports, or in its announcements. That doesn't mean it won't hire you. It means there's nothing on the record to point to.

Does FedEx do background checks?

FedEx runs background checks for some roles. One FedEx Express posting (Material Handler, Memphis, TN) says applicants must pass a criminal background check and a drug screen. FedEx doesn't publish a company-wide policy on what is checked, when, or by whom.¹

• Criminal history
• Drug screen

• How long a background check takes

Does FedEx drug test?

FedEx drug tests for some roles. One FedEx Express warehouse posting says a drug screen is required for that position, describing it as a non-DOT safety-sensitive job. Commercial drivers in DOT-regulated jobs must pass a federal pre-employment drug test. FedEx hasn't published which other roles are tested.^1,2

Rules for specific jobs

• FedEx Ground delivery drivers working for independent service providers

  FedEx says its contracted service providers are independent businesses responsible for hiring and training their own drivers. Those drivers are employees of the service provider, not FedEx employees, so screening rules come from the service provider.³

• FedEx employee delivery drivers

  FedEx's driver careers page says a good driving record that meets Federal Motor Carrier Safety regulations is required, and some driving jobs need special licenses.⁴

• Commercial drivers in DOT-regulated jobs

  Federal rules require a negative pre-employment drug test before a CDL driver first performs safety-sensitive work for an employer.²

• Warehouse / package handler jobs

  Requirements vary by posting. A Material Handler posting in Memphis requires a drug screen, a criminal background check and a valid driver's license; a Package Handler posting in Independence, KY that we opened didn't mention either.¹

Your rights, and how far back a check can go

• Under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), an employer must get your written permission before it gets a background report about you from a background screening company.^7,8,9
• Before an employer decides not to hire, keep, or promote you because of something in a background report, it must give you a copy of the report and a document called "A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act."^7,8
• You have the right to dispute inaccurate or incomplete information in your background report directly with the company that made it.^7,10
• The FCRA's seven-year limit does not apply to criminal convictions, so under federal law a conviction can show up on a background report no matter how old it is.^11,12
• Under the FCRA, background and credit reports generally cannot include arrest records, civil lawsuits, or civil judgments that are more than seven years old (or older than the statute of limitations, if that is longer).^11,13

Your full background check rights

Before you apply

• You can ask a background screening company for the information it has on you, and the CFPB keeps a list of consumer reporting companies, including employment screening companies, with their contact details.^7,10,14
• According to the Clean Slate Initiative, 14 states and Washington, D.C. have passed Clean Slate laws that meet its criteria for automatically clearing eligible records: Pennsylvania, Utah, New Jersey, Connecticut, Michigan, Delaware, Virginia, California, Oklahoma, Colorado, Minnesota, New York, Illinois, and Missouri, plus D.C.¹⁵
• The Federal Bonding Program, run by the U.S. Department of Labor, lets states give employers free fidelity bonds that protect them against losses from a newly hired worker's dishonest acts, for job seekers with past justice involvement or in recovery from substance use.^16,17

See whether you can clear your record in your state