How a Criminal Conviction Can Affect Your Employment
Certainly one of the biggest concerns our clients have is how a criminal conviction — or even an arrest — will affect their employment.
- What can your current employer learn about past criminal charges? Will your employer be informed of your arrest?
- What can a future employer learn about a criminal charge or conviction?
- Can a criminal charge, even if you weren’t convicted, prevent you from getting a job?
- Is there anything you can do to prevent your employer from seeing your criminal record?
There are some generic answers to these questions:
- A criminal record is open to the public, so your employer can see if you have been arrested or convicted of a crime, but the employer has to look for this information, typically by doing a criminal background search for employment purposes. Except in certain situations, your employer will not be notified of any new arrests or convictions that occur after the background search is performed.
- It is generally the employer’s decision whether to hire someone with a criminal charge or a conviction on his or her record. However, some criminal convictions will prevent you from holding certain types of jobs.
- The only thing you can do to prevent an employer from seeing your arrest record or criminal record is to have the charges expunged (which is not possible for every type of crime) and your record sealed.
There are lots of qualifiers here. That’s because accurate answers to these questions will depend upon the type of crime and the type of job you hold or hope to hold.
When you need answers, contact the Utah criminal defense lawyers at Greg Smith and Associates. Our Salt Lake city defense attorneys will review the specifics of your case and give you the information you need to make decisions about your future. Protect your rights and your employment. Call us anytime at 801-651-1512 or contact us online.
Employment Repercussions of Criminal Convictions
- If you are active-duty military personnel, you could find yourself facing a discharge if you are convicted of certain crimes, such as domestic violence.
- If you hold a professional license — such as doctors, lawyers, teachers and real estate agents do — you could lose your license for a conviction for a number of offenses.
- If you work with children — teachers or day care providers — you could lose your license if you are convicted of child endangerment or other child-related offenses.
- If you are a professional driver, you could lose your commercial driver’s license (CDL) if convicted of drunk driving.
- If you need a security clearance for work, a criminal conviction could prevent you from obtaining it.
In some cases, a conviction on one charge will have no effect on your license or security clearance, but a slightly different offense can mean you are unemployed. In these cases, it may be advisable to plead guilty to a reduced charge or a different charge that will not affect your employment.
Contact Our Utah Criminal Law Attorneys
Contact a Utah criminal law attorney at Greg Smith and Associates to schedule a free initial consultation at our West Jordan or Richfield law office. Call 801-651-1512.
