Manpower: Hiring, Background Check & Employment Verification FAQs

Manpower was founded in 1948 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, by Elmer Winter and Aaron Scheinfeld. The founders, both attorneys, needed a typist for a deadline project and could not find anyone willing to work on a temporary basis, so they built a business around that gap. The company grew into one of the largest staffing organizations in the world.

Today Manpower is the flagship brand of ManpowerGroup, a publicly traded workforce solutions company headquartered in Milwaukee and listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker MAN. ManpowerGroup operates three principal brands: Manpower, which handles contingent and permanent recruitment and workforce management; Experis, which focuses on IT professional resourcing and project-based solutions; and Talent Solutions, which delivers end-to-end talent lifecycle services. Manpower itself reports more than 3,500 branch offices across 75 countries, and ManpowerGroup has been named to Ethisphere's World's Most Ethical Companies list 15 times, which the company notes is more than any other organization in its industry.

The Manpower brand sells four main services: direct hire, which places a candidate onto a client's payroll permanently; flexible staffing, which supplies contingent workers for seasonal peaks, project work, or short-term needs; a contract-to-permanent option that lets a client evaluate a worker before making a permanent offer; and onsite management, which embeds Manpower staff at a client site to run the contingent workforce program. The brand recruits across business professional roles such as customer service, sales, human resources, and marketing, as well as engineering, finance and accounting, life sciences, and supply chain.

Company culture and employee programs:

Manpower's workforce has two distinct populations. The first is the large group of associates placed on assignment at client companies, in light industrial and warehouse work, call center and administrative positions, skilled trades, technical and engineering jobs, and professional functions. The second is Manpower's internal staff: recruiters, staffing and account managers, branch leaders, onsite program coordinators, business development professionals, and corporate functions. The company says it cares about people and the role of work in their lives, and it runs training and career development programs including MyPath. Pay, assignment length, benefits, and eligibility differ by country, branch, client, and whether a worker is an associate on assignment or internal staff, so candidates should confirm details with their recruiter.

Yes. Employers and staffing firms in the recruitment and workforce solutions industry, including Manpower, are legally permitted to conduct pre-employment background checks on job candidates, provided they follow applicable federal, state, and local law. In the United States, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) governs employment screening, setting rules for disclosure, written authorization, and the adverse action process. Because Manpower operates in dozens of countries, screening outside the US is additionally shaped by national employment and data protection law, which in some markets sharply limits what an employer may check.

Manpower is generally reported to conduct background checks as part of its placement process, which reflects standard practice across the staffing industry. Staffing firms typically verify identity and work authorization, confirm employment history, and order criminal history and other searches when the assignment or client requires them. The scope of a Manpower background check may vary widely by role, client, industry, and location, because the agency screens to the standard its client needs.

Steps vary by market and role, but the Manpower hiring process generally follows a recognizable staffing sequence. Candidates register online or with a local branch and complete a profile covering skills, availability, and work history. A recruiter interviews the candidate, may administer skills assessments, and discusses which assignments fit. When an opening appears, the recruiter submits the candidate to the client, who may interview as well. A conditional offer or assignment confirmation typically precedes any background check or testing, and onboarding covers client-specific safety, systems, and site rules.

Timing depends on which searches are ordered, how quickly courts and prior employers respond, and how many jurisdictions a candidate's history covers. Many checks come back within a few business days, which matters in staffing because assignments often need to start quickly, while multi-state or international searches and verifications that rely on a former employer's records can take longer. Candidates who want to understand what typically affects the timeline can review background check turnaround times.

The scope is set by the employer and, in staffing, frequently by the client company that will host the assignment. A background check may include some or all of the following:

Candidates should read the disclosure and authorization forms they receive, which identify the searches that will run for a particular assignment.

Lookback periods depend on the search type and on the law where the candidate lives or works. Under the FCRA, consumer reporting agencies generally may not report most adverse non-conviction information older than seven years, with exceptions for higher-salary roles and certain record categories, and a number of states apply stricter limits. In staffing, the practical lookback can also depend on the client's own policy, since a client in a regulated industry may ask for a deeper review than the agency would otherwise run. Outside the US, national law may narrow the window further or restrict criminal checks entirely.

Manpower does not publish a detailed policy on candidates with felony records, and outcomes are typically decided case by case, often with reference to what the client assignment requires. Employers commonly weigh the nature and severity of the offense, the time elapsed, evidence of rehabilitation, and the relationship between the record and the duties of the role. Many states and cities have enacted "ban-the-box" laws that restrict when employers may ask about criminal history during the application process. Candidates are encouraged to be honest with their recruiter, who is often in a position to match them with assignments where a past record is less likely to be disqualifying.

Candidates are typically asked for written consent before screening starts, usually through a standalone disclosure and authorization form. Expect to provide a full legal name, date of birth, Social Security number or local equivalent, address history, and proof of identity and work authorization. Depending on the assignment, you may also be asked for a driver's license number, license or certification details, or education records. Accurate information keeps searches in the correct jurisdictions and reduces delays, which matters when an assignment has a near-term start date.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act is the US federal law that governs how consumer reporting agencies collect, use, and share background check information. It requires employers to obtain written authorization before ordering a report, to provide a pre-adverse action notice with a copy of the report and a summary of rights before finalizing a negative decision, and to give the candidate a chance to dispute information they believe is inaccurate. For a detailed overview of how the FCRA and Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidance apply to hiring, see this introduction to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

It can be either, and sometimes both. In many staffing arrangements the agency is the employer of record and orders the report itself, to a scope that satisfies the client. At large clients with their own compliance programs, the client may run an additional check before granting site or system access. Either way, the organization that orders a consumer report is responsible for the FCRA disclosure, authorization, and adverse action steps. Candidates who are unsure should ask their recruiter which entity is ordering the report and who to contact about a result they want to dispute.

Running a personal background check with Checkr lets you preview what Manpower may see and helps you catch potential inaccuracies before they affect an assignment or application. In one secure report you can review:

Create your report in minutes at Checkr Personal Background Checks. To present verified credentials proactively, build a free Checkr Profile you can share with recruiters, hiring managers, or prospective employers.

Check your report status in the Candidate Portal. Or visit the Checkr Help Center for FAQs, dispute steps, and to contact support.

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.