License required for job with no driving?

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Matthew74

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I just moved. I was stunned to see that jobs that DO NOT REQUIRE DRIVING still require a driver's license on the application. There is even an online questionnaire when you apply that asks you if you have one. There is no space for "other ID", "comments", or anything like that.

Have any of you dealt with this? What did you do?
 
Usually what they want is some form of legal ID that has your picture along with proof of your current address on it, and a drivers license provides this (many times this is so the potential employer can check for a criminal record). Maybe a passport would work, but I'm not sure. In British Columbia we have a "B.C. Services Card" which everyone young and old will soon have, and will serve as the same picture ID etc. that a drivers' license has (but it has an extra decal embossed on it for those who happen to drive). It is worth finding out if your state of residence has something like this. It is fairly common for need picture ID of some kind - what do you normally use to prove you are who you say you are and that you live where you claim to live (eg. when you want to apply for a library card, have to have medical tests done, etc.)
 
Requiring a DL Would Be Discriminatory!

Matthew,
I live in Minnesota and here requiring a DL to qualify for a job that doesn't require driving would be considered discrimination because it would be requiring something unnecessary to do the job.
In Minnesota we have picture ID cards that are exactly like a DL only they have a different color strip across the top, so you can tell the difference between the two. Like masterjen said, you need to check to see if something like that is available in your new location. I have had an ID card since they became available. Here a person gets an ID card at the same place someone renews their DL, using the same cameras.

acshuman
 
I have an ID, and a passport.

I think it's discriminatory. The problem is that the employer can define the job however they want, if that includes possibly-maybe driving across town every now and then, that's what it is.

It seems that employers are making it increasingly difficult to get hired by putting up more and more barriers.

The city jobs website says that to apply you must have 10 years of continuous employment, and that you have to account for any time not working. If I did that my resume would be 10 pages long and include all sorts of personal information! It also said a particular degree was necessary for the job, even though I found out it was not. If you didn't have the degree you had to have 6 years of experience. The person from HR said that there are people who have been working there for 4 years who can't get advanced because they don't have a degree or 6 years experience. My master's degree was irrelevant. I found out today that the job requires the employee to do the same job at 2 different locations in one day. I don't think you could take the bus. (Basically, its one person doing two jobs.)

I'm applying for another one that, although it doesn't say so, probably requires occasional deliveries or pick-ups. The job would not normally require driving, but they want a "vehicle and clean driving record".

Ordinarily both of these positions would be strictly one site, one building, no driving jobs.

And, I'm not kidding... I went to the library to get a library card. I had a passport and the official change of address letter from the Post Office, which was mailed to my new address. That was not acceptable. I had to go the DMV to get my ID so that I could get a library card!

I went to the Office of Rehabilitation. (I have done this before 3 other places I lived and had no problems.) 1. After a video and presentation, they asked me to come back on another day to meet my counselor. I said I didn't drive and asked if I could see someone that day. They did manage to get me to see someone that day. 2. Because I had epilepsy, the counselor didn't believe me when I said I could work, even though I had been working before I moved. It was the most overt discrimination I have ever experienced. I said I needed a suitable job that would allow me to be independent. He was not on board. He wanted to get me A JOB. (I have had A JOB for 15 years.) He gave me a form for my doctor to sign saying I could work and how many hours. He said that he couldn't even give me a bus pass until I "qualified for services" by having the note from the doctor. (My doctor would just ask ME what I think.) Catch 22: I can't have the doctor fill that out, and then go apply for disability - even though IF I get disability in might not be for years. I can't get help from Rehabilitation without the signed form. 3. I called the office and asked for a different counselor and they haven't returned my call.

Even if you have a sense of humor about the whole thing, it makes you wonder if it's worth it. You don't know what to do. The HR person said that there would be some suitable part time employment posted the next couple days. I have a good chance, and I should like the job. Unfortunately, it won't allow me to make a living.
 
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I just moved. I was stunned to see that jobs that DO NOT REQUIRE DRIVING still require a driver's license on the application. There is even an online questionnaire when you apply that asks you if you have one. There is no space for "other ID", "comments", or anything like that.

Is there a spot for 'NO'? I'd check that one or ask someone, if you can since it's an on line questionnaire, about the question. Does it ask for your drivers license number if you check 'YES' or does it just want to know if you have one? If the job doesn't require any driving it shouldn't matter if you can't. Since the job doesn't require any driving then there's no reason that you shouldn't get it because you can't.

Matthew,
In Minnesota we have picture ID cards that are exactly like a DL only they have a different color strip across the top, so you can tell the difference between the two. Like masterjen said, you need to check to see if something like that is available in your new location. I have had an ID card since they became available. Here a person gets an ID card at the same place someone renews their DL, using the same cameras.

Same thing here in Pennsylvania. Places ask for a drivers license because it's something that someone usually has to show their identification. When I'm asked for it I just take out my ID card and I've never had anyone say anything about it. It could be that it's because it looks almost identical to a drivers license that they don't realize that it's not.

Usually what they want is some form of legal ID that has your picture along with proof of your current address on it, and a drivers license provides this (many times this is so the potential employer can check for a criminal record). It is fairly common for need picture ID of some kind - what do you normally use to prove you are who you say you are and that you live where you claim to live.

Yea, anyone can walk into some place and say they are 'John Doe' and that they live on '5th Street' in some city. But if you have something legal with your picture on it then they will know for sure that is true. Sometimes they want to double check your signature too, which a drivers license has on it. There have been times when I've paid for something with a credit card and I'm asked for my drivers license so they can see all this info. When I take out my ID card they never say a thing, I don't even think they realize that it's not a drivers license.
 
ID Card and DL Siminlarities!

Many times I think that most people , who are not trained to notice the difference, can't tell the difference between the two!
The funny part is when a cashier or whoever is handling the card notices that it is not a DL and they start asking me why I have something as strange as an ID card. They have grown up and believe that there is something definitely wrong with someone who doesn't have a DL.
I've even had people remark 'Had to get this until you get your DL back from a DUI, huh!' I simply answered him with 'At least I know when to keep my mouth shut about the way someone else does things in their life!'. He immediately threw my ID card on the counter and moved on to the next customer. I guess he was too embarrassed to speak to me anymore.
They may be making it more difficult to land a job,but they are also showing that they are willing to use any cheap excuse they can to deny people a job or dismiss people who already have a job. This is an employer that I would in no way want to work for.
I had a job where I had a seizure in the workplace. They called me into the HR office and handed me a piece of paper they told me I had to get my doctor to sign to be allowed back to work. This paper said that my doctor was 'guaranteeing' that I would never have a seizure again. My doctor said he couldn't sign the paper because he can't guarantee anything about anyone. When I contacted the job I told them that if I had to get this guarantee signed I wanted every employee of the company, all the way up to the president, to get the same paper signed. I was suddenly getting excuses from the legal department of the company about how they couldn't do that because it would be embarrassing to the people, yet it was OK to require me to do it!
All too many employers just want to have the feeling of control over all of their employees because this feeling makes them feel important. All too many times the HR person had this same feeling of superiority over anyone they interview or any present employee! :rolleyes:

acshuman
 
I've been noticing that jobs are adding ridiculous requirements and questions, making it difficult for more people to get a job. Some jobs I have applied for online required me to enter my non-existent driver's license number or would asked if I had a license, and these were jobs at restaurants that don't deliver and cashier jobs. I think the number would be the same if you had a state ID and a license but I always click out of the online applications because I don't want to be seen as a liar if they can't find my license and I use my state ID number instead. They ask other discriminatory questions such as "Can you lift at least 50 pounds?" and make you take these absurd personality assessments before even meeting you.
I've also been asked unnecessarily in interviews too if I have a license. I tell them no but that I do have reliable transportation. *rolls eyes*
 
I had a job where I had a seizure in the workplace. They called me into the HR office and handed me a piece of paper they told me I had to get my doctor to sign to be allowed back to work. This paper said that my doctor was 'guaranteeing' that I would never have a seizure again. My doctor said he couldn't sign the paper because he can't guarantee anything about anyone.

I'm sorry but this actually made me laugh! When I told my husband he asked me if you were serious (and I know you were) he just shook his head and rolled his eyes, he couldn't believe it. He said "How stupid can some people be?"
 
It could be they were checking to make sure you have a way to get yourself to work. We have our own company. You wouldn't believe how many people want a job and have no way to get to work. My nephew was young, trying to get a job, so he could pay for and get car insurance, so he could take his test and get his license. He was applying online all over the place and a lot of places wouldn't even take his application because he couldn't fill in the license question. Sometimes I wonder why everything has to be so hard.
 
It could be they were checking to make sure you have a way to get yourself to work.

One of the funny things that places don't think about is just because you have a license doesn't always mean the you have the car to go with it.
 
One of the funny things that places don't think about is just because you have a license doesn't always mean the you have the car to go with it.

LOL - very true!

I had a license for years but didn't own a vehicle for much of this time. Fortunately I now live in a city, and because of a fairly good public transit system it is becoming more and more common for people to not own vehicles at all.
 
Matthew,
I live in Minnesota and here requiring a DL to qualify for a job that doesn't require driving would be considered discrimination because it would be requiring something unnecessary to do the job.
In Minnesota we have picture ID cards that are exactly like a DL only they have a different color strip across the top, so you can tell the difference between the two. Like masterjen said, you need to check to see if something like that is available in your new location. I have had an ID card since they became available. Here a person gets an ID card at the same place someone renews their DL, using the same cameras.

acshuman
:agree:

It's the same way here in Arizona. The Dept. of Transportation issues them as well as drivers licenses. I happened to mention having a reduced fare bus card at a medical office and was told that since that is issued by an official gov. office and has my picture on that it is official ID,
If you have ANY doubts or problems please contact the U.S. Dept. of Labor. That's what they are there for.
 
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Do people who've gotten their license taken away from them, for example a DUI, get to keep their actual license card or is taken away from them and given an ID card? I know someone who's lost their license and was still able to get a job.
 
I keep reading about "License taken away from them." I no longer drive but I have my drivers license. Since I only use it for ID Maybe I should get the ID card instead.
But as long as I have it it seems like it is a link to my old pre-epilepsy life. I keep it because having it somehow gives me hope that one day I may be able to drive again.
If I give it up it makes me think that I have lost all hope and have given in to never being in better.
Does that make sense to anyone?
 
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