A DUI can cause a financial hardship, and that problem is only compounded if your arrest or conviction results in the loss of your job. Many people hope that their employer never finds out about their arrest, but can you be terminated for failing to inform your employer about an arrest? We take a closer look at whether or not you are required to report your DUI arrest to your employer in Minnesota in today’s blog.
Duty To Report Your Arrest
As you might have guessed, there’s no one-size-fits-all answer to the question as to whether or not you need to inform your employer about your recent DUI arrest. We’ll start with the basics and explain some of the exceptions.
Essentially, there is no standard legal requirement in Minnesota that states employees must report their DUI arrest to their employer. For the vast majority of workers, this means that they do not need to bring the drunk driving arrest up to their employer. This doesn’t mean that your employer won’t find out, and in some cases that can lead to consequences for your employment, but most workers are not legally required to inform their employer about their DUI arrest.
However, this doesn’t apply to every single employee, and it really comes down to whether or not you signed a contract at the beginning of your employment and the language of that contract. Some contracts state that all arrests and convictions must be reported to the appropriate department, and in this case you could be fired for failing to report the incident. So if your employee contract requires it, you should take a meeting with Human Resources and explain your situation instead of hiding it and hoping they don’t find out.
There are also some professions where criminal offenses must be reported. For example, doctors and pilots are usually required to report any arrests and convictions. You may also need to report the arrest if it threatens your driver’s license and you are required to drive for your job, but oftentimes these situations are laid out more clearly in individual contracts.
Basically, if you’ve been arrested and charged with a crime that could impact your employment if your employer found out about it, now would be a good time to review the contract you signed at the beginning of your employment. If you didn’t sign a contract, odds are you’re in the clear. Regardless of whether or not you have to report your arrest, it’s likely in your best interest to contact a criminal defense lawyer and talk about your options. If you can get the charges reduced or dropped, you may not even need to worry about your employer finding out.
For more information, or for help with your criminal case, reach out to the experienced defense team at Appelman Law Firm today.
