Kiewit Corporation: Hiring, Background Check & Employment Verification FAQs

Kiewit traces its roots to 1884, when the Kiewit family started a small local masonry contracting business in Omaha, Nebraska. The company still calls Omaha home and describes itself as one of North America's largest and most respected construction and engineering organizations, with roughly 140 years of construction experience behind its project delivery. Unlike most firms of its size, Kiewit is employee-owned, and it characterizes itself on its own site as a multi-billion-dollar, employee-owned organization operating through a network of decentralized district offices and subsidiaries.

The work spans eight market areas that Kiewit publishes on its website: building, industrial, marine, mining, oil, gas and chemical, power, transportation, and water. Within those markets the company provides end-to-end engineering, procurement, and construction services, taking projects from feasibility studies through design and into field execution. Typical scopes include highway and bridge construction, tunneling, rail and transit systems, water and wastewater treatment plants, pump stations, power generation and transmission, and heavy industrial facilities.

Because Kiewit organizes itself around districts and subsidiaries rather than a single centralized office, the employment experience varies quite a bit from one part of the business to another. A candidate hired into a corporate engineering group in Nebraska works in a very different setting than a craft professional traveling to a remote energy or mining jobsite. Job titles across the organization include equipment operators, carpenters, ironworkers, electricians, laborers, welders, surveyors, field engineers, project engineers, superintendents, project managers, estimators, safety professionals, and a full range of administrative, accounting, and information technology staff.

Construction work of this type carries safety, security, and access considerations that shape how contractors approach hiring. Employees may operate heavy equipment, drive company vehicles, work on federal or utility-owned sites, or hold credentials tied to specific trades. Those realities are the usual reason construction employers screen candidates before a start date is confirmed.

Company culture and employee programs:

Kiewit publicly emphasizes its core values, which it says have been the foundation of its success since 1884, and it markets heavily to students and early-career engineers with the message that classroom knowledge becomes real-world impact on its projects. The company promotes internal development and long project-based careers, and its employee ownership model is a recurring theme in how it describes itself to candidates. Specific pay, benefits, relocation support, and per diem arrangements vary by district, trade, union agreement, and project location, so applicants should confirm details with the recruiter handling their req.

Yes. Employers in the construction and engineering industry, including Kiewit, are legally permitted to conduct pre-employment background checks on job candidates as long as they follow federal, state, and local law. In the United States, employment screening performed through a third-party consumer reporting agency is governed by the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), which sets rules for disclosure, written authorization, and the adverse action process. Canadian provinces, where Kiewit also operates, apply their own employment and privacy statutes to the same activity.

Kiewit is generally reported to conduct background checks as part of hiring, which is consistent with standard practice among large construction and engineering contractors. Heavy civil employers routinely screen because workers operate machinery, drive on public roads, and enter secured client, utility, or government sites. The exact scope of a Kiewit background check is not published, and it may vary by role, district, project owner requirements, and the province or state where the job is based.

The Kiewit hiring process differs between craft and salaried roles, but the general sequence is familiar. Candidates apply online or through a campus or jobsite recruiting event, then complete a recruiter screen. Salaried applicants typically move on to one or more interviews with district leadership or the hiring manager, while craft applicants may be assessed on trade experience and certifications. A conditional offer usually follows, at which point the candidate is asked to authorize a background check and any other pre-employment requirements. Onboarding, site orientation, and safety training generally begin once those steps clear.

Turnaround depends on which searches are ordered, how quickly courts and past employers respond, and how many jurisdictions a candidate has lived or worked in. Many reports come back within a few business days, while searches involving multiple counties, international records, or slow-responding verifiers take longer. Candidates who want a realistic sense of the schedule can read this overview of background check turnaround times.

The employer decides which searches to include. For a construction and engineering role, a screening package may cover some or all of the following:

Review the disclosure and authorization paperwork you receive to see which searches apply to your specific position.

Lookback windows depend on the search type and on where the candidate lives and worked. Under the FCRA, consumer reporting agencies generally may not report most adverse non-conviction information older than seven years, with statutory exceptions for higher-salary roles and for certain record categories such as convictions in many states. Several states impose tighter limits than the federal floor, and motor vehicle record lookbacks are set by each state's DMV rather than by the FCRA. A candidate with history in several jurisdictions can see different windows applied inside a single report.

Kiewit does not publish a detailed policy on applicants with felony convictions, and construction employers generally evaluate these situations individually. The nature of the offense, how long ago it occurred, evidence of rehabilitation, and the duties of the specific job all tend to factor in, as do client or project-owner site-access rules. Many states and cities have passed "ban-the-box" laws that restrict when criminal history questions may be asked during hiring. Candidates are generally best served by answering application questions truthfully and being ready to discuss their record if it comes up.

Applicants are typically asked to sign a standalone disclosure and give written consent before any report is ordered. Expect to provide your full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number for United States positions, and a multi-year address history. Driving roles usually require a valid license number and state, and trade positions may require copies of certifications, union cards, or training records. Accurate information reduces the chance of a mismatch that delays the report.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act is the federal law governing how consumer reporting agencies gather and share background information used for employment. It requires clear disclosure and written authorization before a report is ordered, obligates employers to send a pre-adverse action notice with a copy of the report and a summary of rights before deciding against a candidate based on it, and gives candidates a window to dispute inaccurate entries. For a fuller walkthrough of the statute and the related EEOC guidance, see this introduction to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

Positions that involve driving a company vehicle, hauling materials, or operating equipment on public roadways generally add a motor vehicle record search to the package, and commercial driving roles are subject to federal drug and alcohol testing rules. Employers reviewing an MVR commonly look at license status and class, endorsements, suspensions, and moving violations over the state's lookback period. Candidates in these roles should confirm their license is current and unrestricted before the report is ordered.

Running a personal background check with Checkr lets you preview what Kiewit may see and gives you time to correct inaccuracies before they affect your application. One secure report covers:

Start your report at Checkr Personal Background Checks. To share verified credentials with recruiters ahead of time, set up a free Checkr Profile.

Track your report in the Candidate Portal. For FAQs, dispute instructions, and support contacts, visit the Checkr Help Center.

The resources and information provided here are for educational and informational purposes only and do not constitute legal advice. Always consult your own counsel for up-to-date legal advice and guidance related to your practices, needs, and compliance with applicable laws.