A question for the Legal SavyFollow

Cali is an "at will" state. Any time, for any reason.

Check with HR about company policy as it relates to you.

No witnesses on the possession. Only legal documents.

The DUI? a car full of drunks? Had to call two friends to come drive the rest home while I got carted away. Cops were nice though. Took me to a 12 hour holding location called 1st chance and let me go without having to be bailed out.

Edited for spelling

Edited, Mar 3rd 2009 3:59pm by Aadyn Litefoot

The DUI was 9 years ago and the stolen property was 12 years ago.

You're fine. California law only allows employers to "look back" 7 years, even on criminal convictions. Could they find out and fire you for some other trumped up reason? Sure. Why would they, though? The main reason people don't hire felons is perceived liability, which they wouldn't have, what with being required legally not to research that far back.


Cali is an "at will" state. Any time, for any reason.

All states are "at will" states. This is a chunk of boilerplate employers add to applications for no particular reason. As a practical matter, it's utterly meaningless. California actually has some of the most employee beneficial law of all states. I'm not an expert on California employment law, but it wouldn't surprise me in the least if it were illegal to terminate an employee based on background check information discovered after hiring them if they hadn't lied about it.

/nod

It depends on what is in your personnel file, particularly your job application or any kind of questionnaire that you may have had to fill out. Usually, the application/questionnaire asks if you have ever been convicted of a crime. You HAVE to check yes, no matter when it happened, if the application doesn't specify a time frame. If you didn't admit to your criminal history about it in the application, there is a possibility that this could bite you in the end. But if there is nothing in writing and things just went off your resume, you should be OK.

Due to corporate compliance laws for federal as well as state, the background check may be required, depending on whether your company is a public company or not. Chances are, though, a summary background check is going to be done and your criminal history may not be picked up. However, I would just come clean with someone in the HR Department that you're comfortable with and who you know will go to bat for you. They should weigh your past discretions against your current performance as their employee. Unless your specific job requires no felony convictions at all, you should be fine.

You took care of that perfectly. Do you have an HR person iin your office that you can speak with while you're waiting for the background check to be run? I'd just go to that person, give the person a summary of what happened, that you completed your sentence, probation, etc., and that you have learned from your mistakes. Voice your concern that mistakes that were done more than a decade ago will be held against you and negatively impact an evaluation of your work performance of the past 4 years.

In this day and age, pretty much everyone has skeletons in their closet, and it's a hard remiss for employers to find someone with a liiy white background.

These are the days and ages that we actually have to deal with?

So it's immaterial if they are no different from the past.

Hush Timelord, WE have to deal in the present.



Edited, Mar 5th 2009 12:43am by Aripyanfar

I will die from laughter if Kaelesh and Aadyn are in the same company and didn't realize it.

Kaelesh, PM Sent. I dont work in Escrow or Title, I do IT for this company.

Thumb, No HR in this office. Closest one to me is at corporate. When they consolidated they did it across the board.

Does your immediate supervisor know about your background?

The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is a law that helps protect you during background checks. The FCRA applies to employers, landlords, and lenders. They must get your written permission before they can purchase a background check on you. If the background check shows negative information that cause them to deny your application, then the company must give you copy of the negative information and tell you where they got it. Then you have a chance to refute wrong information. You also get a chance to present your side of the story, so be ready with a truthful account that places you in the best light. On the other hand, if you hire a babysitter or nanny, then you are now an employer, and you should follow the same FCRA rules when you run a criminal background record search on a nanny or gardener.

No end as of yet. I emailed the HR at corporate regarding it and they have not received a copy of the report yet. I spoke to my new boss when this first came up. He told me that he appreciated my candor and doesn’t think that there will be any issue with keeping me on. I am still on pins and needles until I get that email stating that everything is all right and I will not be terminated because of my adverse background check.

Well the report is in. HR called me today for a bit of clarification and said there will be an answer regarding my status tomorrow.

/crosses fingers

I really don't want to loose my job and end up sueing them for wrongfull termination when I have been nothing but upfront with them.

Fun fact: the phrase is properly "bated breath", as in held/suspended. I'm not sure what one would use to bait one's breath. Worms to attract fish, I suppose. Rotting meat for foxes.