Is there much point declaring a minor criminal conviction?

Tufty Porcupine

As Del Pierro says, check whether you have to divulge the info under the terms of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act.
If the conviction is spent (this will depend on the nature of the offence, when it was committed and how old you were at the time), you do not have to record it (unless the employer has an exemption from the Act due to the nature of their work).
If the terms of the Act suggest that you do have to record it, then it's your call! Yes an employer may not do a search. But, if they find out, 5 or 10 years down the line, they can terminate your contract with immediate effect due to fraudulent completion of the application form. You may be better missing out the criminal conviction section altogether, rather than telling a lie. If they pick you up on this you could at that stage tell the truth - say at interview, explaining that it was an oversight on your part and giving the full details. If they don't pick you up about it, maybe they aren't bothered.

Del Piero 10

Depends when it was. It may be covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act in which case you don;t have to mention it unless the job is outside the scope of the Act..

jo jo

You should always be honest, even if you explain face to face the conviction etc. If you don't and they employ you and find out after, it will put you in a bad light, and could be classed as fraud. Be careful.

Lock R

True, but if they find out without you disclosing it, they have a excuse to sack you at any time that suits them without fear of recourse!

LYN W

Hi,

Some interesting answers here.

In the UK,

If you are asked at interview if you have any convictions then if the conviction is 'spent' under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 you can say no quite lawfully. If it is not 'spent' then you must disclose it. Spent convictions rely on the sentence imposed, not the offence itself. If the sentence was 2 1/2 years imprisonment or more the conviction can never be spent.

If you are not asked the question either verbally or on an application form you are under no legal obligation to volunteer information.

If the job is exempt from the 1974 Act then you must disclose it anyway as they will do a background check anyway. The level of this check varies depending on the job and/or its whereabouts. i.e schools, hospitals, MOD establishments, nuclear power plants etc.

In saying that you have very little employment protection until you have been at the company for 12 months.

Hope this clarifies things for you.

Good luck

Rachel

but if you are in that job for 10 years, have a pension, share options etc and they find out, they can sack you on the spot for not declaring this and you could lose it all.... I would tell them at the interview. Make a good impression and explain the conviction fully being honest.

jonni_hayes

here they usually don't check either depending on the job, but if they did find out later your employment would be terminated for falsifing your application. I don't know about in the UK, but in the USA, it is never asked on an application about minor criminal convictions, only felonies and even then some of them don't have to be reported...like felony DUI unless it has something to do with driving like a company car or something......

screaming monk

You might want to get a police reference report for a few pounds (assuming you are in England). If enough time has elapsed since the infraction or if the police are nice, it might be excluded from the report. Talk with the cops.

Enter Your Message or Comment

User Name:
User Email:
Post a comment: