I'm wondering if anyone has any insight on what the potential problems would be with getting hired, or even doing student clinicals in a hospital, if you've been arrested during a non-violent protest. I am considering joining in the attempt to shut down the NY Stock Exchange on Thursday, to honor the 2-month anniversary of the beginning of the Occupy Wall Street movement, and it is at least somewhat likely that many people will be arrested during this action.
Likely charges for this kind of arrest would be something like "disorderly conduct" (impeding of traffic, failure to disperse after being given an order to do so, creating annoyance or alarm in public, loitering, etc). I don't think most people arrested during an Occupy protest have spent even one night in jail, but charges are being pressed so people are ending up with criminal records on misdemeanor charges.
I'm not even a nursing student yet - I'm hoping to enter an Accelerated BSN/MSN program in the spring. But I am wondering if anyone knows what kind of issues there might be for me as a student and as a future nurse if I'm arrested during a protest, just so I go into this with my eyes open.
Its hard enough getting a job now, even those in the top of their class. When holding your application (with a criminal record) next to another applicant (no criminal record) with the same qualifications; 9 times out of ten they will pick the other person. Heck, with as many people applying, if they see you have a criminal record they might not even bother giving your an interview so you can "justify" your arrest.
I would not chance it. An arrest record does not look good to either a nursing school or the State Board of Nursing. A little food for thought though:
Once you get a job as a nurse, you will have to contribute your money to a retirement plan. Retirement plans are typically a mutual fund which originate from Wall Street. Many other individuals had to contribute for their retirement plans as well. If you wish to retire you will have contribute to a mutual fund because money in a savings account only accrue less than 1% per year. As much as I would like to sympathize with the Occupy Wall Street campaign I would feel that I would be a hypocrite since I contributed to a 401k which is essentially a mutual fund.
Getting a job as a nurse is hard enough without any arrest records and besides from what I read on these Occupy movements, the basic demographic is younger individuals who owe more on their student loans than what they ever could afford to pay. I attribute this to poor planning. As a former student myself I had to determine if the degree was valuable enough to both land a job and to pay off loans. To me it sounds like these individuals went to college to cruise through and land a job at the end. Times have changed and the new economy only allows so many individuals to land a job with a philosophy degree that might have cost $80,000. It's only my .
Know your history and politics before you protest. Every single individual out in the occupy movement is misguided and clueless. Blame the people who are directly responsible for the problem instead of causing a wasted, and at times treasonous, disturbance. If you really want to make a difference, go vote, or at least move the protest to the whitehouse, the problem lies solely there.
Its not corporations keeping them from getting jobs, .
I couldn't disagree more. When corporations have been and continuously are sending all of our jobs overseas to save money (meanwhile, making record profits) and laying off American workers in the process, it IS corporations that are keeping people from getting jobs. Granted not all are doing this, but it has been going on for years and now we are seeing the effects. America survives on imports for almost everything we buy anymore. We don't actually produce much of anything anymore and now, even call centers are being moved overseas. Try calling to get assistance with your computer and you will be talking to someone in India who can't even understand your needs.
I couldn't disagree more. When corporations have been and continuously are sending all of our jobs overseas to save money (meanwhile, making record profits) and laying off American workers in the process, it IS corporations that are keeping people from getting jobs. Granted not all are doing this, but it has been going on for years and now we are seeing the effects. America survives on imports for almost everything we buy anymore. We don't actually produce much of anything anymore and now, even call centers are being moved overseas. Try calling to get assistance with your computer and you will be talking to someone in India who can't even understand your needs.
You must dig deeper than this superficial level of analysis. Think about WHY they're moving overseas. It's because it costs a hell of a lot less to do so when theyre not subject to the crippling regulatory policies of the left-wing in this country. Land and labor are cheaper, which equal larger profits, and at times those extra profits are what is needed simply to keep a company from going under due to the policies here. It's not as hostile and toxic of an economic environment as was created here in the united states by our politicians. Where-ever businesses have a friendly environment for growth, they will choose to go there. I dont agree with them outsourcing overseas, it ruins this country, however you must look deeper and realize why they are doing so. Theres a reason for everything. The proper people to blame are not the corporations, it's our government for conistently overstretching their boundaries and infringing on our lives both privately and in the business world.
OP, I personally agree with OWS on many issues. It fires me up how corrupt this country is and how the government is allowing, condoning, even promoting and taking part in such corruption. The problem lies with the govt. AND the corporations, since the corporations have pretty much taken over our government and we have no voice, I think occupying wallstreet makes sense. The money is where the power is. Also, to argue with some of the others who say, "if you want to make a difference, go vote". What a joke! Voting is a sham. We get no choice. The only choices we get in voting is between 2 crappy candidates who both have campaigns backed heavily by corporations who are making sure to keep their hands in the presidents/elected leaders pockets in order to control their every move. This is not a choice, this is not giving us the chance to make a difference.
Anyways, as you can see, I feel deeply about these issues and would go out and protest if I didn't have anything to lose, but I will not risk being arrested and potentially lose everything I have worked so hard for. Unfortunately, people are being wrongfully arrested, even for peacefull assembly, the police are moving and arresting people anyways. Did you see the video of the people who went into CitiBank to close their accounts and were locked in by the security guard and then arrested, they even pulled some people into the bank from the outside in order to get them inside to arrest them. They did not give them the chance to leave or anything. It might not hurt you in the future, you never know, but is it worth risking it? It's sad that we have such little voice and say in this country that we must worry about such issues just by practicing our constitutional rights, but unfortunately this is the way it is. Even if you are still able to get your license, an employer may look negatively on the reason for your arrest and choose not to hire you. Personally, I have donated items to the local occupy movement in my town and helped in that way, but will not be a physical body in the protest because of these reasons.
Specializes in ED, Telemetry,Hospice, ICU, Supervisor.
Haha - thanks for the insight! My goal isn't to work for the Man. I'd like to be in independent practice. But obviously I have to get lots of clinical experience first, so the Man needs to be reckoned with. :)
Lol, so in short you still need the man around up until you get your own independent practice at which point you become the man.
No I wouldn't hire you. I wouldn't hire you even if you DIDNT get arrested. I wouldnt hire you for being part of that filthy "protest".....JMO
How would you know the OP had participated in the protests if there's no arrest record? You wouldn't happen to be asking illegal questions about political affiliations in your interviews, would you?
As far as the Citibank issue where they called the police on people there to, close accounts, didn't that branch end up being charged with filing a false report?
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SeeTheMoon
250 Posts
Am I the only one who sees the irony in this thread?