Q: Can Charles Schwab rescind my job offer due to a DWI conviction?
I have a convicted DWI charge in Texas, and I have received a job offer from Charles Schwab for a Software Development Engineering in Test (SDET) position. Charles Schwab has requested my court disposition. I'm concerned about whether they can rescind the job offer based on my DWI conviction. Could you provide guidance on how this might affect my employment prospects with them?
A: When and where was your DWI? Was it a Class A or Class B? You may eligible to file a petition of non disclosure which would seal your record from public view. However, that does not address the job offer. It will depend on their own internal policies.
A:
Assuming the job offer is for here in Texas, the deal is that since we are what's called a "right to work" state, the Schwab job offer can be rescinded with or without reference to your DWI conviction.
Now if this job offer was reduced to a written contract between you and Schwab, you might have some way to discourage them from withdrawing the offer.
My best advice to you is to tell your prospective employers the exact truth about your conviction for DWI. In Texas, anyone who pleads guilty to DWI, or who is found guilty by a jury or a judge has a DWI conviction on his/her record. You should think about going to Alcoholics Anonymous as this is very impressive to prospective employers usually. There will, in all likelihood, be recovering alcoholics involved in Schwab Human Resources. I am not saying that you are alcoholic but you should go to some AA meetings to see if you you think they can help you. Prospective employers generally support people who at least investigate the possibility that they may have the disease of alcoholism.
A: It depends on your race and ethnicity and what your essential job functions will be. An employer may use an applicant's criminal history in making hiring decisions only if that history is relevant to an essential job function. For example, if part of your job involves travelling or operating machinery, a DWI conviction is likely relevant. Otherwise, using criminal history is a type of racial and ethnic discrimination prohibited by federal law under existing EEOC guidelines. https://www.eeoc.gov/laws/guidance/enforcement-guidance-consideration-arrest-and-conviction-records-employment-decisions
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