A regular question that many people charged with drink driving ask is, “Will I lose my job for drink driving?”. The fact is, one of the most common traffic offences in Australia is the offence of drink driving. Since it is a criminal offence, if a person gets convicted for drink driving, it goes onto their criminal record.
But having a criminal record isn’t the only consequence of a drink driving conviction. It can affect other aspects of a person’s life, like getting a job.
In this post, we will take a look at the crime of drink driving, and we will also look at questions like:
- Will I lose my job for drink driving?
- Will a conviction for drink driving affect my employment?
- What if I got a DUI and lost my job?
- How do I get a job after a DUI conviction?
What is the Offence of Drink Driving?
The offence of drink driving is also known as Driving Under Influence (DUI). This refers to driving while under the influence of alcohol or driving under the influence of drugs.
A DUI charge is a serious offence under Australian law. It comes with different but strict punishments in different states and territories. These punishments include fines, community service, prison terms, temporary and lifetime bans.
In some states like Victoria, you will face a period of mandatory disqualification from driving if you get convicted of DUI. Your disqualification period can last anywhere from 3 months to 4 years. It depends on how serious your drink driving charge is.
In addition to affecting the offender’s employment screening for certain professions, a drink driving conviction also affects applications for firearms, visa applications and more.
These penalties exist because driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs can have serious consequences. A pedestrian can lose his life when a driver under the influence of alcohol or drugs drives dangerously.
The law prohibits driving after drinking more than the maximum amount of alcohol legally allowed. A suspect for drink driving will get a BAC (Blood/Breath Alcohol Concentration) test performed on them. If such a person is over the legal limit, the authorities will bring a charge of drink driving against them.
Will I lose my Job for Drink Driving?
If you are convicted for a charge of drink driving, you may get disqualified from driving for a time which the court determines. And if driving is an essential part of your job, you will be unable to carry out your work duties if you get disqualified from driving. This inability to drive may result in you losing your position at work.
Whether or not you will lose your job due to a drink driving conviction also depends on your employer. If driving is an essential part of your job, your employer could consider reassigning you to a role that does not require you to drive. But there is no legal obligation on your employer to do so.
If there is no other role that you can fill in your current job, then your employer has the right to terminate your contract. You may need to go through the conditions of your employment in your employment contract. Find out if your role requires you to hold a valid driver’s licence.
If driving is not a significant aspect of your job, then a drink driving conviction may not affect your employment. All you need to do is to find an alternative means of getting to and from work. You may consider using public transport.
Will Drink Driving Conviction Affect My Employment Options?
A criminal record contains all the releasable convictions or offences of an individual that is stored in a National Criminal Database. Many organisations, companies and institutions request for an updated National Criminal History Check record or a National Police Check before they employ or admit applicants to any roles.
For some delicate roles, this background check is a compulsory employment requirement. So even though having a criminal record should not be a barrier to landing the job you want, it actually is, in some cases.
A drink driving conviction will affect your employment if:
- Driving is an essential part of your role in the employment
- The law stipulates that a person who is convicted cannot be employed for the role.
In Australia, it is illegal for employers to discriminate against a potential employee on the basis of their criminal record. The exception is if the criminal conviction directly relates to or is relevant to the job.
The employers therefore have some discretion in such a case. They have the right to decide whether the drink driving conviction is relevant to the job or not.
What Do I Do if I Got a DUI and Lost My Job?
If you lost your job due to a DUI conviction, don’t panic. All is not lost. You can apply for another job that does not require you to drive or hold a driving licence.
For instance, a drink driving conviction does not prevent you from becoming a teacher. You can still teach if you have a drink driving conviction in some parts of Australia, like Victoria. But to register as a teacher with the Victorian Institute of Teaching (VIT), you have to go through a Nationally Coordinated Criminal History Check (NCCHC).
How to Get a Job After a DUI Conviction
Here are a few tips to help you get a job after you get a DUI Conviction:
#1. Prepare a strong application:
A way to do this is to ensure that you are competent for the new role you’re applying for. A DUI conviction record will not nullify your competence for a job. The exceptions are where the law requires that it be so, or where driving is a relevant part of the job.
Most employers go for the best-suited person for the job, not the person with the perfect criminal records.
#2. Focus on making progress:
After losing your job due to a DUI conviction, you must focus on making progress personally, psychologically, and mentally. Prospective employers will be impressed with any development that you have made since your conviction.
#3. Avoid applying for employment roles where driving is relevant:
Don’t apply for positions where driving and navigating is relevant if you had lost your previous job because of a drink driving conviction.
#4. If you’re not asked, do not disclose:
Jobs like factory workers, foreman, bartenders, and so on, do not require a Criminal record certificate for employment. If you are applying for a job like these, do not disclose details of your criminal records. If you aren’t asked directly, then say nothing about it.
If your DUI conviction has no relevance to the role, then be credible enough in your current role. Recommendations from your previous employer may help to boost your credibility.
#5. Do not to get convicted again:
If you have a DUI in your criminal record, work hard towards overwhelming the influence of that record. You can achieve that through responsible living and good behaviour.
Getting another conviction will dampen your chances with another employer or recruiter. But your employer may be predisposed in your favour if your last DUI conviction was long ago.
Do you need a Drink Driving Lawyer?
A DUI offence is a serious criminal offence. This is because driving under the influence puts the driver and other road users at the risk of serious harm or death. A DUI conviction can affect certain jobs you apply for, and stop you from getting certain benefits.
If you are facing any DUI charges, the best thing to do is to get an expert defence lawyer. Your lawyer will represent you and ensure that you get the best outcome possible in your case. And there’s no better place to get expert defence lawyers than at Brooke Winter’s Solicitors.
Our team of highly experienced drink driving lawyers will represent you and strengthen your defence case. We will work hard to mitigate the penalties that you will receive if you are found guilty. We will advise and represent you on any Criminal Law, Traffic Law or Domestic Violence matter.
We have offices on the Gold Coast, South Brisbane and Hobart. We are a mobile office and we will come to you wherever you are in Australia. We represent clients in courts throughout Queensland, New South Wales and Tasmania.
Are you facing the risk of losing your job because of drunk driving? Then don’t delay. Please contact us now.
A manslaughter trial that was being heard in a New South Wales District Court has been abandoned after a juror has allegedly conducted ‘home experiments’ in relation to the evidence.
The jury had gone into deliberations following the trial which had been running for a period of three weeks. The manslaughter trial was in relation to Sergeant Matthew Kelly who is accused of causing the death of a motorcyclist (Jack Roberts, aged 28) during a Police pursuit at Blue Haven in 2020.
The foreman (who is a member of a jury in a court of law who is chosen by the other members to act as spokesperson for the jury) wrote a note to the Judge which explained that a juror has used a book, their body and a ruler to recreate the evidence that was presented. This is alleged misconduct as juror are not to conduct any of their own inquiries, or discuss evidence with anyone other than their fellow jurors and only when all jury members are present. The juror had allegedly recorded the results of their home experiment on a notepad and attempted to present their ‘evidence’ to the rest of the jury members who refused to listen. The foreman sought the jury member in question to be dismissed but to allow the remaining jury members to continue to deliberate. They would be required to provide undertakings to ignore any of the ‘evidence’ that was presented by the juror in question.
Defence Counsel made an application to discharge all jury members and sought the Director of Public Prosecutions to consider whether charges are to be laid against the juror in question. The maximum penalty in New South Wales for jury misconduct is two years imprisonment. The Crown attempted to have the one juror discharged and continue the Trial, however Judge Mahony later dismissed the jury.
A new trial date will be set at a later date with the estimated three weeks of evidence to be presented to a fresh jury.
Our team specialise in criminal defence. Our role is to sit down with you and work out the strategy that will get you the best possible result. If you have any questions about this article or any other topic of law, please call our team of experts on 1300 066 669.
The Public Trustee is a socially and fiscally responsive Statutory Authority that is designed to help to make decisions that enhance the dignity, rights and interests of Queenslanders. The Public Trustee is governed by the Trustee Act 1978. The Public Trustee is self-funded – meaning it does not receive any financial support or funding from the Government.
The role of this body is to take control when someone is deemed by a doctor to no longer have the capacity and it is decided there is no suitable family member or friend to manage their money.
Their services are expansive, including wills, real estate, investments, financial administration and enduring power of attorney.
Four Corners – an investigative journalism program – recently looked into the effectiveness of this body. They reported that the “Public Trustees have escaped media scrutiny because gag laws in most of the country stop ‘clients’ from talking publicly. Journalists can be fined or jailed for identifying them, even after they have died”.
The finding has been extensively reported, and is worth a read:
https://www.abc.net.au/news/2022-03-14/public-trustee-four-corners-investigation/100883884
The Queensland Government has ordered an internal investigation of the Public Trustee after allegations vulnerable people have been charged.
The Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability is encouraging people to share their story regarding their experiences of guardianship by going to disability.royalcommission.gov.au or calling 1800 517 199.
A Melbourne UBER driver is in hospital following an attempted armed robbery which occurred in the early hours of Saturday morning sometime after 3:30am.
Mr Hassan Ahmed was one of the victims of multiple unrelated violent incidents which occurred in Melbourne over the weekend.
He is recovering after being stabbed seven times and bashed by the two passengers who attempted to ambush him during their trip. One of the stab wounds was to his back after he attempted to flee his attackers. He was punched twice by one of the men and the second one sent him back into his car door’s edge which caused extreme pain.
Mr Ahmed was unaware of what caused the attack and was unaware of what the two men were aiming to get from the violent attack until they began demanding his keys from him.
He did not realise he has put the keys in his pocket, meaning his attackers could not make off with his vehicle as they had intended.
Mr Ahmed fled to a nearby service station for assistance and emergency services were called to the scene. It was only upon their examination that he became aware of his stabbing wounds due to being there being so much blood from all his injuries and he was struggling to breathe.
Upon medical assessment it was confirmed that Mr Ahmed’s lungs had both been impacted by the attack. His right lung had collapsed and his left lung had been punctured.
From the other attacks which occurred in Melbourne over the weekend atleast four involved attacks by assailants with knives, two of which ended in fatalities.
A police investigation is ongoing and there have been no arrests at this time in relation to Mr Ahmed’s attack.
Our team specialise in criminal defence. Our role is to sit down with you and work out the strategy that will get you the best possible result. If you have any questions about this article or any other topic of law, please call our team of experts on 1300 066 669.
A 33 year old Logan man has died as a result of critical burns suffered to 90% of his body.
It is believed the house fire which resulted in Stanley Obi’s death was set by his former partner, Sarah Mudge. She is thought to have broken into the home before allegedly committing arson.
Superintendent Mark White has commented, “We believe the person who does not live at that residence was somehow able to gain entry and then once in there was able to throw petrol around and that’s how it’s gone’”.
Mr Obi was hospitalised Thursday evening following the fire, however police announced he succumb to his injuries.
A body found at the scene of the incident is believed to be that of Sarah Mudge.
It is known that another woman, thought to be Mr Obi’s current partner, was present in the home at the time, and was hospitalised following the incident. Three children present at the scene were not injured.
The flames left severe damage to the structure of the building. Superintendent White stated, “The structure itself is in a very fragile state, and that is making the forensic investigation very difficult.”
Superintendent White further stated, “Police have had contact with the male victim and an ex-partner in relation to domestic violence incidents.”
Our team specialise in criminal defence. Our role is to sit down with you and work out the strategy that will get you the best possible result. If you have any questions about this article or any other topic of law, please call our team of experts on 1300 066 669.
Photo Credit:7NEWS
In the Brisbane Supreme Court on Monday 7 March 2022, a Queensland grandmother plead guilty to drug trafficking charges. 62-year-old Sandra Castle was charged following a six month period of trafficking dangerous drugs including methamphetamine, cannabis and Oxycontin from her home.
Ms Castle was running the operation along side her daughter and her partner, before it became a target for a police operation working to bring charges against those involved in the operation.
The court was informed that Ms Castle was receiving Centrelink benefits at the time of the drug trafficking and she is estimated to have turned over more than $80,000.00 whilst her operation was running.
Ms Castle is suffering from terminal cancer and arrived in court in a wheelchair for her sentence. The was informed that she may only have months to live at this time.
Justice Susan Brown presided for the sentence of Ms Castle and in her remarks said the circumstances of the offending were highly unusual.
The offence of Drug Trafficking usually attracts a penalty of atleast five years in custody, however Ms Castle was sentenced to a five year suspended sentence, which means she will not spend time in custody unless she reoffends and is required to be resentenced.
Ms Castle received a suspended sentence as Corrective Services Staff and Queensland Health would be unable to accommodate the grandmother given the advanced nature of her cancer and liver disease. It would be too difficult for the staff to provide the appropriate accommodations she would require.
Drug trafficking carries a maximum penalty of 20-25 years imprisonment, which depends on if the drugs are a Schedule 1 or Schedule 2 drugs under the Drugs Misuse Act 1986.
Our team specialise in criminal defence. Our role is to sit down with you and work out the strategy that will get you the best possible result. If you have any questions about this article or any other topic of law, please call our team of experts on 1300 066 669.
Jarryd Hayne, former Parramatta Eels player is set to face his third sexual assault trial. Hayne is alleged to have sexually assaulted a woman in 2018, following the NRL grand final. He now faces two counts of aggravated sexual assault.
In 2020, Hayne’s first trial resulted in a hung jury, where the jury where unable to reach a unanimous verdict.
The second trial found the former NRL player guilty of sexual assault, which led to him spending 9 months in prison. This conviction was later overturned by an appeal on the basis of evidential errors and judicial instructions being flawed.
Hayne was subsequently released from the Cooma Correctional Centre on bail in February.
The Office of the Department of Public Prosecutions has confirmed they are set to proceed with a third trial, despite the stresses and costs that are likely to result.
Jarryd Hayne continues to claim the sexual acts were consensual in nature, and maintains his innocence.
Our team specialise in criminal defence. Our role is to sit down with you and work out the strategy that will get you the best possible result. If you have any questions about this article or any other topic of law, please call our team of experts on 1300 066 669.
Queensland is finally catching up!
Similar to how we download our vaccination certificate, we will soon be able to download our driver’s licence onto our phones. The technology will also include digital access to marine licences and proof of age cards.
The digital licence will be considered an ‘official document’ allowing you to drive and will also be accepted as a valid form of identification. When having to prove your 18+ status, the digital licence will show a single green tick, without having to share any other personal details- similar to the green tick on the Queensland Government app, confirming you are vaccinated.
The Department of Transport carried out a successful trial on the Fraser Coast in 2021. A 94% satisfaction rate was reported. The plan is to now roll out digital licences across Townsville later this year before the technology will be expanded across greater Queensland early next year.
The digital roll out is long overdue- licences holders in New South Wales and South Australia have been utilising a digital licence since 2019.
Our team specialise in criminal defence. Our role is to sit down with you and work out the strategy that will get you the best possible result. If you have any questions about this article or any other topic of law, please call our team of experts on 1300 066 669.
The Australian Government has announced that there will be support available for those in South-East Queensland who are currently being affected by the flooding. Affected parties can apply for an Australian Government Recovery Payment to give them some support in this time of need.
If you have been significantly affected by the natural disaster occurring in Queensland, you could be eligible for this payment.
Eligible Affected Areas
At present the Local Government Areas eligible include Gympie and North Burnett. You can check the Services Australia website to confirm if any further Local Government Areas have been added to this list.
Who is Eligible?
You must be an Australian citizen or resident to be eligible for the payment. If you are a protected visa holder you will be considered an Australian resident for this payment.
You can make a claim if you are sixteen (16) years or older at the time of the natural disaster and you cannot claim more than once.
If you are a couple residing in the area who have been affected by the natural disaster, you can both make separate claims to each receive a payment.
You cannot claim if you have suffered minor damage or inconvenience from the floods, you will need to have been seriously affected by the storms and floods. The following are examples of what are eligible reasons to claim:
- You or a dependent child were seriously injured;
- You suffered major damage to your home as a result of the flood; or
- You are the immediate family member of an Australian citizen or resident who died or is missing due to the flooding.
How much is the Payment?
Adults are eligible for a $1,000.00 payment which will be a lump sum payment.
A child or children under 16 years old are eligible for a $400.00 payment each.
How to Claim?
You can make your claim online or through your Centrelink account that is linked to your MyGov account.
If you need further information on this payment, see the below link.
South East Queensland Floods, February 2022 – Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment
If you are a New Zealand citizen residing in Australia, you will not be eligible for the Australian Payment, but you are encouraged to see if you are eligible for the New Zealand Disaster Recovery Payment through the below link.
South East Queensland Floods, February 2022 – New Zealand Disaster Recovery Payment
Russian President Vladimir Putin has authorised a military operation in the Eastern European country. This has come after months of denial by Russia of such plans, whilst troops continue to be seen massing in Moscow.
The Ukraine is located in eastern Europe and is the second largest country in terms of land area in Europe. Ukraine is the eight biggest country in Europe in terms of population. The Ukraine was formally a Soviet state, however gained independence in 1991.
It is unclear as to why President Putin has made the decision to invade, as he has maintained that Russia has no intention of invasion for a significant period of time. However, there has been a build up of forces near the Ukraine border, which commenced in approximately March 2021 with an escalation in the last week.
In December 2021 Moscow issued a number of demands that included the Ukraine never being granted membership with NATO (a military alliance formed after the Second World War), which was accompanied by some vague threats of military response. The demands by Moscow were formally rejected in January. President Putin made a national address on Russian television to recognise the independence of two breakaway republics in Ukraine’s east. In the address he went on to describe the Ukraine as an integral part of Russian history and indicated that areas in eastern Ukraine were ancient Russian land. President Putin criticised the Ukraine saying that neo-Nazis were on the rise.
Western Countries have responded with sanctions on Russia. This includes the United States blacklisting Russia’s big banks and oligarchs. Furthermore, there have been promises of comprehensive sanctions on Russia’s sovereign debt. President Biden has stated:
“That means we’ve cut off Russia’s government from Western finance. It can no longer raise money from the West and cannot trade in its new debt on our markets or European markets either.”
Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has indicated the intention to join other Western nations in imposing sanctions.
The Ukraine is not a member of NATO therefore it is expected that the Ukraine will be on its own in relation to fighting forces. The US have also made it clear they will not get involved in the fighting and will not be sending support in those terms. The Ukrainian military has indicated that it won’t stand a chance against the Russian military forces without significant military support from the West. There are simply not sufficient military resources available to repel a full-scale attack on them.
The US and it’s allies have made it clear to President Putin that if Russia invades, the US and it’s allies will impose the most severe sanctions that have ever been imposed.
Our team specialise in criminal defence. Our role is to sit down with you and work out the strategy that will get you the best possible result. If you have any questions about this article or any other topic of law, please call our team of experts on 1300 066 669.
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