Underage drinking. Crime or no?

[CWO1977]

What is the name of your state? WI

When I was 20, I got 2 underage drinking tickets. I plead guilty and paid my fines. Not a DUI, no suspension, no councelling, etc... Just guilty and fined.


Several jobs I applied for asked if I have ever plead guilty to or been found guilty of a crime?
...or questions along those lines.


Is underage drinking considered a "crime"? Should I just be safe and put it on applications so I am not falsifying the app?

I have had one instance where the HR rep must have mistaken the underage drinking as a DUI, because they lost their interested in me as a candidate...and I would rather not have to explain it if I don't absolutely HAVE to.


I guess I am trying to figure out what underage drinking is considered. Without much knowledge of such things, I am assuming it is a misdemeanor? And is that considered a "crime"?


Any assistance/thoughts on this matter would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks in advance.

Charles

 

[Beth3]

Yes, underage drinking is a crime. If it weren't, you wouldn't have been cited. If the application asks "Have you ever been convicted of a crime?" you must answer "yes."

I can assure you that an HR person would not confuse a misdemeanor citation for underage drinking with a OWI. This may astound you but it is actually possible that the employer lost interest in you for other reasons.

 

[CWO1977]

um...thanks?

Astounding? No. Insulting? Yes.
I came here asking for help...not to be taunted.

I appreciate your help and assurance, but you can keep the attitute to yourself.

This may come as new information to you (since you have no idea of what my situtation was), but I was in the 3rd round of interviewing when they asked about my record. It was at that point they lost interest. I realize there could be other factors involved, but the fact that my HR contact asked me in a confused manor "Was this a driving citation?" kind of tipped me off that she was unclear of what my real citation was.


Also you stated:
"Yes, underage drinking is a crime. If it weren't, you wouldn't have been cited."

Then are traffic violations "crimes"?
Because I have been "cited" and "convicted" of those as well.



I don't proclaim to know what I am talking about...that is why I am here. And I do appreciate any help that can be offered.

 

[Beth3]

Yes, traffic citations are also crimes. Any violation of the law is a crime. Littering is a crime. That question on application forms is often phrased "Have you ever been convicted of a crime other than minor traffic or moving violations" or words to that effect.

Unless your applying for a job that involves driving a company vehicle, your employer doesn't care about your driving record (moving violations, parking tickets, etc.) unless we're talking serious or felony situaitons: OWI's, vehicular manslaughter, etc.

By the by, I wasn't taunting you. I was pointing out that it's possible, if not in fact likely, that there were other possibilities why someone else was hired.

 

[cbg]

Regardless of whether you are correct in your assessment of the reason for HR's losing interest in you or not, the fact remains that underage drinking IS a crime, you DO have to include it on the apps if a truthful, literal interpretation of the question would mean including it, and there is nothing illegal about a company "losing interest" in you because of it.

P.S. I assure you that you were not the only person in the third round of interviews and that you were not the only one dropped at that point, either.

 

[JETX]

"Astounding? No. Insulting? Yes.
I came here asking for help...not to be taunted."
*** I think we just saw an example of the REAL reason why HR lost interest in this 'candidate'.

 

[HomeGuru]

The writer isn't a candidate. He's an idiot.

 

[CWO1977]

Thanks senior member HomeGuru. I appreciate that. If the majority of your posts are similar to this one, I would say that you must be well respected on this board.

The writer isn't a candidate. He's an idiot.

 

[CWO1977]

Thank you cbg.

I assumed that this was the case, and have listed the 2 tickets on all applications.

And I suppose you are right...it just seemed funny to me that the HR contact I had would ask such a question of me and then no longer be interested.
In fact, I never got a formal rejection letter. They just stopped returning my calls. It was quite odd...something I never came across before, and hope to never come across again.

Regardless of whether you are correct in your assessment of the reason for HR's losing interest in you or not, the fact remains that underage drinking IS a crime, you DO have to include it on the apps if a truthful, literal interpretation of the question would mean including it, and there is nothing illegal about a company "losing interest" in you because of it.

P.S. I assure you that you were not the only person in the third round of interviews and that you were not the only one dropped at that point, either.

 

[CWO1977]

JETX...why is that? Because I stand up for myself? Because I do not just stand for being insulted?

If I was overly sensitive, then I apologize...but I would like you to tell me how I was supposed to read a statement that starts "This may astound you..."

How would you read a statement like that?
Especially when you admit you are a novice and are simply asking for help?

"Astounding? No. Insulting? Yes.
I came here asking for help...not to be taunted."
*** I think we just saw an example of the REAL reason why HR lost interest in this 'candidate'.

 

[CWO1977]

Beth3

I apologize for my sharp response to your post...I obviously took your post the wrong way.


As for wording...that's the odd thing. For the job I specifically mentioned, the question was not phrased in that way. It simply asked if I had plead guilty to / convicted of any crimes in the last 5 years.

I did not know whether to list my driving citations or not. (I always thought of them as a rules violation, not a crime...reason #495 I did not study law as a profession.)




Let's just say that things worked out better that I did not get that job.


But thank you for your assistance. I will list driving citations in the future if the question does not specifically ask me to exclude them. ...and I will continue to list my underage drinking tickets (like I have in the past)

That question on application forms is often phrased "Have you ever been convicted of a crime other than minor traffic or moving violations" or words to that effect.

 

[Beth3]

Better safe than sorry but as I said, unless it's a driving position, I doubt a prospective employer would care at all about a couple of moving violations and a parking ticket. Good luck with the job search.

 

[HomeGuru]

Thanks senior member HomeGuru. I appreciate that. If the majority of your posts are similar to this one, I would say that you must be well respected on this board.

**A: that's right.

 

[CWO1977]

Thanks.
And actually, I still have the position I took instead of the one I have mentioned here. It was mostly a curiousity question for right now, but I am tucking this info in my back pocket for future use.

I am hoping it stays there for quite some time.

Better safe than sorry but as I said, unless it's a driving position, I doubt a prospective employer would care at all about a couple of moving violations and a parking ticket. Good luck with the job search.

 

[cbg]

Too many people assume that a question means something other than what it says. I answered a question on another board quite recently from someone who assumed that when a question asked if he had EVER been convicted of a felony, it meant within seven to ten years, since most of the apps he had filled out had specifically mentioned that time period. I gave him the same advice I now give you; if you find yourself answering questions on an employment application again (although for your sake I hope you don't) answer all questions literally and truthfully. If you honestly don't understand what they're looking for, ask. But don't assume that a question means anything other than it says.