Your DUI Conviction and Employment Background Checks

Having a DUI conviction on your driving record, and in some states even a simple arrest, you may have to bear the consequences of it for many years to come. It is often heard that people feel the weight more for their actions after they are done with their sentencing than they do when experiencing it. Because once your fines are paid off, and your time behind bars perhaps has been accomplished, you still have to deal with the very real truth that there is something on your criminal record indefinitely. If you hold a Commercial Driver’s License (CDL) then there is an even greater penalty that you will have to face as a result of your drunk driving conviction.

Having a DUI on your record may harm your ability to receive future employment, and in some situations it may actually hurt you current place of employment as well. It is not unheard of that current employers will conduct at random background checks on all those who are in their company in order to maintain a safe workplace environment. However, there are also some situations in which a company will conduct a background check for the wrong reasons, and it is under these circumstances when it cannot be used against you. Depending on your employer, there are likely certain restriction when it comes to the employer being able to conduct a background check, which is why you will want to make sure that you contact an attorney who can help you with our current or past DUI offense.

Due to the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) this discusses the topic of background checks for employees or prospective hires. Under this act, no criminal record for an arrest is to be published after seven years, and if there is a conviction, unless you receive an expungement, it will remain on your record for an indefinite period. Fortunately, due to the Civil Rights Act of 1964, employers cannot simply refuse to hire a person who has even a criminal conviction because they have a record. However, it is within their right to not hire a person if they feel that the conviction, or current state of the person, is a danger to their other employees as a whole.

It is important to realize that there a certain jobs with in the country that require respective employees to allow for a background check. This would include jobs such as teachers, care givers, law enforcement officials, commercial drivers, etc. In the event that you have been recently arrested for driving under the influence of alcohol, it is important to understand the reality of the situation and how much it can affect your future. Please contact the experienced Collin County DWI attorney that you deserve fighting on your side at The Law Office of Troy P. Burleson, today!