What To Do After One Of Your Employees Gets Arrested For DUI

It is no secret that employees are the most valuable intangible assets of the company. They should not be taken for granted or treated poorly for that matter. Employees are human, which means that they are prone to making mistakes. Your first impulse might be to correct that particular person and ensure they don’t ever repeat that mistake. Many business owners follow the same rule with themselves after making common entrepreneur mistakes. Nevertheless, it is important to focus on learning rather than warnings.

How are you supposed to deal with someone who has made a really big mistake? Imagine the following scenario: A member of your team approaches you and tells you that they have been arrested for a DUI. Or maybe you have heard it from someone else. It does not really matter. What is important is what you will do next. Several factors must be taken into account when planning your next steps. This includes the time the employee has stayed at the company and the nature of the criminal offense. These tips will turn out to be useful when it comes down to coping with an employee who has been arrested for driving under the influence.

Remain Calm

As an entrepreneur, it is not uncommon to be required to deal with unusual situations. It is not every day that one of your employees comes to you and says that they have been arrested for drunk driving. Panicking is the normal reaction. You are not able to predict what will happen next, so you start to panic. This is normal taking into consideration what has happened. However, you should not waste your time and energy on panicking because it will motivate you to make bad decisions.

The last thing that you should be doing right now is making decisions. Instead of focusing on the panic and drama, you should focus on the facts. Keep in mind that every person is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Maybe your employee was not to blame for the situation. you will not know until you do some investigative work. do your best to remain calm in this situation. do not let your thoughts run around and try to control your reactions. Impossible as it may seem, you should at least try.

Inquire About The Situation

Operating a motor vehicle while being impaired by alcohol is considered to be a criminal offense. Many business owners do not hire someone with a DUI because of this. It is just as serious as a traffic violation. The penalty imposed by the law does not include time spent in jail, but that does not mean that drunk driving is less serious. Your employee has been honest about what happened. They informed you from the very beginning about the situation. Now, what?

It is recommended to find out more about the nature of the criminal offense. The employee says that they are innocent and they have been wrongfully arrested. Is that so? As a matter of fact, there have been cases for false positive readings. Common causes for false results on a DUI test include but are not limited to residual alcohol, inadequate calibration of the device, and, last but not least, medical conditions such as diabetes and acid reflux.

The point is that you cannot protect the member of your team until you know precisely what happened. An arrest does not necessarily mean that your employee has committed a crime. Give the person the chance to explain the circumstances of the situation and determine whether the explanation provided is reliable. Make sure to be tactful. You should not make negative judgments. Try not to be biased.

Seek Legal Counsel

Your employees’ actions reflect upon the company. So, if one of the members of your team does something wrong, the image of the company risks being affected. It is therefore necessary for people to adopt special conduct in their personal life. Regardless of whether your employee is in an entry position or a high-level position, you have the right to question their actions. Their actions should be consistent with the values of the company.

An employee is like a family member, which is why you should treat them with respect and consideration. If you have managed to determine that the person working for you all these years is innocent, make sure they have adequate legal representation. Maybe your employee cannot afford to hire a lawyer for the time being. Criminal law varies from state to state, so if you are based in Oakland, only an Oakland DUI attorney can get the case dismissed. The legal professional will know that the state of California has two separate charges for drivers impaired by alcohol, not to mention other details. This is just an example.

Seek legal counsel for yourself too. An attorney will tell you what you can expect in this kind of situation. For instance, you will discover that it is not a good idea to talk to third parties such as journalists or non-management employees. Moreover, the legal professional will advise you on what practices to follow. For example, you can administer absenteeism policies. Anyway, it is good to have a cat with an attorney.

Consider Your Reputation

Furthermore, an employee’s DUI could impact your reputation management results. Even if it turns out that your employee was not to blame for the situation and the DUI trial was dismissed, there may still be consequences to bear. The public will associate that person with your company, which is could be bad for business. You have spent years building a positive social image and it seems that all those efforts have been in vain. You have helped your employee get through a difficult time, but maybe it is time to part ways.

Before making drastic decisions, it is important to carefully consider the situation. the employee’s ability to do the job has not been affected. What is more, if you terminate the contract, you could face unpleasant surprises. Maybe the public will disapprove of what you did and judge you for not standing by your employee until the end. There is no way of knowing. You may choose to treat the absences as personal leaves and not give them a second thought. However, the decision is up to you.