Pre-employment background check - NEED ADVICE!?

state: California
Charges:
vc23103 - misdemeanor
vc23140 - infraction

happend in apr 2005. been clean since. petition for expungement was granted.

now i'd like to know what do i do when appyling for jobs. from my understanding is that these charges will still be on my record but will say "dismissed" since it was expunged. but does that mean i can answer "no" on applications?

had several interviews, filled out paperwork, background check consent forms, ect and after that i never get a call back from them. when i call to follow up they say the position has been filled which i think is bs and unprofessional of them not to call back and at least let the person know whats going on.

anyway i was fired from my last job for lying on my application and i dont want to make the same mistake twice. so what is the best way to approach this. any advice will be greatly appreciated thanks.

The word most employers use is "convicted" which by definition means that i was found guilty. i was found guilty but the record says "dismissed" still a little confused about that.

the position was temp-to-hire so after 6 months of temp work. they decided they liked me and wanted to make me permanent. i filled out another application from the company not from the temp agency and that is where i answered "no" that i was never convicted

no company has to hire anyone they don't want to and don't have to call every applicant who applies and does not get hired. if they use an outside company for background checks and you signed a release for the check you can request a copy of the report, this is no different then a credit report. if there is an error you have the right to have that error corrected.

usually employers don't fire employees because they lied on an application, you may have not been hired because they found out you lied but once you are hired very few people ever look at that application again. if you were fired and given that as the reason why it was because there was some other reason they wanted to get rid of you and the lie was just convenient.

be honest on your application you can not be denied employment just because you have a past conviction for most jobs, there are some jobs that depending on the conviction will prevent you from being hired.
for example:
anything that has to do with care of elderly or children can not hire you if you have any kind of abuse convictions.

when you are interviewed just explain what happened and what you learned from it. the more honest you are the more chance of getting that interview.

On the application it asks if you've ever been convicted of a felony or misdemenor and asks for details. All though they've been expunged you were still charged. When they do the background check these will come back and if you've checked no on the application, it seems as if you've lied. They generally give you space to explain your charges so I would just explain that they have been expunged and that it was in 2005. They just want to know if you've been convicted of anything so you do need to check yes. Unfortunately people don't pay attention to the EOE sign they stick on their walls and that they don't discriminate based on race, religion, records... etc. Good luck to you!