Interview Filter: How to handle a tricky history

February 23, 2008 6:43 PM

I have a friend who is looking for a programming job. He has an interview coming up, but there's a problem with his past.

He was convicted of a felony over a decade ago. The felony was not drug or child-related (I don't know more than that), but it would look bad to the employer. He's not been in any trouble since. Should he address his past in the interview, and if so, what should he say? He is not in a state which requires employers to ignore older convictions. His interview is not for a school/government position. I thought the hive-mind might have some good insight. Thanks (once again -- I love the hind-mind).

posted by debgpi to work & money (13 comments total)

Its going to be on an application, if it doesn't come up in the interview for god's sake don't mention it
posted by bitdamaged at 6:58 PM on February 23

If they're going to run a background check, there will probably be some forms he has to fill out for that. He might want to consider submitting a written explanation of his conviction with those forms. Although none of the background checks I've run on potential employees ever pulled up a felony record, my understanding is that if one had it would say what the felony was for, so there's no use in being vague or lying about what specifically he was convicted for.

If they don't run background checks or specifically ask then I don't think it's in his best interest (or morally required) for him to volunteer the information.
posted by Jacqueline at 7:00 PM on February 23

I don't think I would address it in the interview, but the employer may want to run a background check on him. I've had them done by several employers, and none were for government/school jobs, just regular tech industry work. If they do want to do one, I would be up front about anything negative that might show up on it. Just tell your story and be done with it. I worked with a guy who, I later found out, had done something incredibly stupid and gotten caught. Like newsworthy stupid. I said to my boss, "Har har, did you know this about x?" And he said, "Oh yeah, he told me that when we hired him." So it didn't stop that tech company. It might not stop the one your friend is interviewing with, even if it "looks bad."
posted by autojack at 7:02 PM on February 23

I worked with a guy who, I later found out, had done something incredibly stupid and gotten caught. Like newsworthy stupid.

You're not going to tell us what it was?

I have a friend was up front with a misdemeanor domestic assault charge just about a year prior and she got accepted to the two jobs she was applying for.
posted by delmoi at 7:40 PM on February 23

A lot depends on age. If he committed a felony in his early twenties he should probably just be direct and upfront about it with the HR manager: "I did some stupid things in my youth".

If he committed a felony in his thirties or older I would be more delicate about it.
posted by tkolar at 10:09 PM on February 23

There's nothing tricky about this at all. He should not bring it up. If asked, he should answer the question honestly and quickly and try to move on to other subjects.

Most employers won't hire an ex-con for a decent job. Since your friend is being interviewed, either this employer doesn't know about the old felony conviction or doesn't care much about it. There's no need to try to correct either of these situations.
posted by ikkyu2 at 10:29 PM on February 23

Don't worry, just deal. I almost passed up a promotion due to the new academia land background checks.... I have half a dozen trespassing charges, a "missing person" report, and a file at the local po-po station. A lot is washed under the bridge, they're looking for child molestation and industrial espionage type things. Depending on position, if it comes up, just lay it out... dumb kid... if it's been long enough since he'll be ok.
posted by zengargoyle at 11:04 PM on February 23

He is not in a state which requires employers to ignore older convictions.

Are there states that require employers to ignore older convictions?

To my way of thinking, it would be better if it were drug-related. Then he could point to a decade of positive work history as evidence that he's overcome it.

Since it's not drug related, it makes me wonder whether it falls into a category of a violent felony (which bodes very poorly for a job candidate's prospects for hire, if the company knows about it) or dishonesty/theft (perhaps not as bad as violence, but still disqualifying for a lot of employers).

Sounds like he just needs to be honest, answer all questions truthfully, and hope for the best.

(What would be funny would be if the conviction was for a dishonesty-related felony, and he lied about it to the prospective employer, justifying the concealment by reasoning, "I've changed, I'm not dishonest anymore.")
posted by jayder at 11:42 PM on February 23

Nth-ing that your friend should answer questions truthfully if he wants to keep the job.

Being dishonest on an application is, in some ways, a larger red flag than the felony itself, because the dishonesty is recent and irrefutable evidence of current untrustworthiness.

And if they're asking on the application (typically a box that you check if you've ever had a felony), the chances are good that they'll find out the truth, either now or down the road. It would suck for your friend to be 6 months into the job, lose it because of dishonesty, and also lose any chance of a reference.
posted by zippy at 1:42 AM on February 24

FWIW, in Washington state, the question is if you have committed a felony is the past 7 years.
posted by mphuie at 4:05 AM on February 24

Most places won't do a background check until after the interview. They'll ask for your permission to perform a background check, at which point your friend should relate their past indiscretion.

I know that some hiring managers can and do hire people with a criminal record, but some companies have policies that determine eligibility forbidding hiring people with past convictions. It really depends on the position, company, interviewer and HR policy, etc.

I've been on a handful of hiring committees and the only time this ever came up, we did actually laugh about it because the applicant had included this information in the application packet. He had used one of those forms you use to print out diplomas or special awards. It was very poorly reasoned as well. Needless to say, he was out of the running, but that had mostly to do with how defensive his excuse was.

Best advice, use tact and be honest. Trying to make excuses or minimize the conviction makes a poor impression.
posted by loquat at 1:46 PM on February 24

I'm also a programmer. I was convicted of a non-violent felony in 1993. I've never disclosed my past. My current employer knows about my past because the owner is a long-time friend of the family. A new client of the employer required criminal and credit background checks. The results of mine were negative. The employer was told that a 7 year check is common but that background checks further in the past than 7 years are uncommon because the cost goes up a lot.

My philosophy has been don't say anything to the employer. There's not much incentive in being honest about a distant past. Chances are the employer will never find out.
posted by muzzlecough at 7:41 PM on February 24

If he does get denied b/c of the felony, he should look into his state's requirements for getting felonies expunged from his record.
posted by herbaliser at 12:41 PM on February 25