Does Spark Driver hire people with felonies?

What Spark Driver has said

Spark Driver is Walmart's delivery app for independent contractors. Walmart's Spark FAQ says drivers must be 18 or older, verify their identity with a driver's license and a selfie, and may be screened through motor vehicle record and criminal background checks; it says results usually come back in 1 to 7 business days. Walmart hasn't published which records disqualify a Spark driver or how far back the check looks.

We didn't find a public statement from Spark Driver 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 Spark Driver do background checks?

Spark Driver runs background checks during onboarding. The Spark FAQ says background screening may be conducted, including motor vehicle records and criminal background checks, and that reviews follow applicable laws. Identity is verified with a driver's license and a selfie. Walmart's Colorado deactivation information sheet lists failing that screening, or failing identity checks, as reasons an account can be deactivated.^1,2

• Driving record
• Criminal history
• Identity

How long it takes: Walmart says Spark background check results are typically available within 1–7 business days, depending on state and county processes.¹

• How long a background check takes

Spark Driver's published screening rules

Minimum age

18

Read Spark Driver's full criteria

Does Spark Driver drug test?

Spark Driver hasn't published a drug testing policy. Some job postings say whether a test is required, so check the listing for the role you want.

Rules for specific jobs

• Spark drivers (independent contractors)

  Eligibility listed in the Spark FAQ includes being 18 or older, an unexpired U.S. state-issued driver's license in your name, a Social Security card, auto insurance for each vehicle you use, authorization to work in the U.S. as an independent contractor, and a smartphone. Walmart says it may suspend or deactivate accounts that stop meeting eligibility.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.^4,5,6
• 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."^4,5
• You have the right to dispute inaccurate or incomplete information in your background report directly with the company that made it.^4,7
• 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.^8,9
• 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).^8,10

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.^4,7,11
• 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.¹²
• 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.^13,14

See whether you can clear your record in your state