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If you live in or aound a city with a relatively large black population you might have heard of "ban the box" movements. The movement seeks to prevent employers from knowing about an applicant's criminal history.
The Ban the Box campaign was started by All of Us or None, a national civil rights movement of formerly-incarcerated people and our families. We started the campaign in 2004, after a series of Peace and Justice Community Summits identified job and housing discrimination as huge barriers to our successfully returning to our communities after jail or prison. The campaign challenges the stereotypes of people with conviction histories by asking employers to choose their best candidates based on job skills and qualifications, not past convictions. Since 1 in 4 adults in the U.S. has a conviction history, the impact of this discrimination is widespread and affects other aspects of life in addition to employment opportunity.
Many cities have enacted laws that incorporated 'ban the box' goals including DC.
Now the investigation in the sensational case in DC is ongoing but it appears the suspected murderer, Daron Dylon Wint, was an ex-employee in a business run by the murdered dad. The company gave an ex-con a chance and this is how they are repaid.
His hiring pre-date ban the box laws so it's not a direct factor here. However preventing employers from knowing the criminal history of applicants is shortsighted and dangerous. Most people that end up in prison son't get there because they're nice, amenable people.
If his hiring pre-dates this legislation/law that you are speaking of, what is the purpose of speaking of this in regards to this horrible tragedy.
And FWIW, I don't believe employers should not be allowed to consider former criminal convictions in their hiring decisions. Many times positions of which employers need employees, are in jobs where one would not feel comfortable hiring a specific sort of felon.
Also there are many ex-offender programs around to assist them in finding work and there are even specific employers who hire ex-felons. Some of the jobs pay good money too. I will admit, I have a cousin who is an ex-felon and a violent offender at that. He spent nearly 10 years in prison but got into a program and became an asbestos/and other hazardous material worker and makes $25-$35 an hour as an independent contractor. So there are options for ex-offenders for employment in positions that don't risk the general public.
This story is just so sad though. I feel for the remaining family of the victims and the communities.
And FWIW, after just perusing the first paragraph of the first link you posted it says that employers can still run a background check:
Quote:
Effective immediately, employers must remove criminal background questions from all job application forms, and can only ask about criminal convictions after a conditional offer of employment is made.
In my experience, and I have hired many employees in the state of GA, but we only looked at resumes first anyway and didn't force people to fill out applications. If we liked them and offered them the job, the candidate would have to pass a drug screening, MVR check, AND a criminal background check (we rarely hired felons due to the nature of work - property management, I never hired anyone who had a felon or who couldn't pass a drug screen).
So basically in DC they now do a process that just eliminates applications it seems. Similar to what many employers already do anyway.
I've hired exactly one felon in my time as an employer. Why? He was upfront. He answered honestly on the application and provided a copies of his case disposition and many written recommendation from people in the Dept of corrections. I called every single person that provided a recommendation and they referred me to a few others in the justice system intimate with this guys case.
When I first started the interview it was the first item he wanted to talk about and move past so he could relate the job training he received in prison and his previous experience in construction.
I hired him and he worked his way into a supervisor position. He stayed with me for five years before getting his C27 license, moving to another part of the state and starting his own company.
I would never hire anyone that wasn't immediately upfront about their criminal past. Box or no stupid box.
You can get around all this with pretty simple resume/interview analysis, followed by a physical for "insurance purposes."
Anyone who was ever incarcerated will have a large gap somewhere in their employment history. If they lie, it gets found out somewhere in the interview/background check process; if they tell the truth, it's right there on their resume.
Anything a resume, interview, background check and physical can't determine, one of those personality profile tests can smooth over. It's like the written essay on a college entrance exam that hides race quotas and discrimination by being so absurdly subjective that anyone you don't want to hire you can bury your real reason inside whatever that test "reveals" about one applicant vs another.
Any ex-felon who could get past all that deserves to be hired because if they are that crafty to get past all those barriers, well that's crafty you should hire and find a way to put to your profitable use.
Any ex-felon who could get past all that deserves to be hired because if they are that crafty to get past all those barriers, well that's crafty you should hire and find a way to put to your profitable use.
Employers should be particularly interested in extortionists and arsonists for the competitive advantage they provide to the employer over his competition.
If his hiring pre-dates this legislation/law that you are speaking of, what is the purpose of speaking of this in regards to this horrible tragedy.
And FWIW, I don't believe employers should not be allowed to consider former criminal convictions in their hiring decisions. Many times positions of which employers need employees, are in jobs where one would not feel comfortable hiring a specific sort of felon.
Also there are many ex-offender programs around to assist them in finding work and there are even specific employers who hire ex-felons. Some of the jobs pay good money too. I will admit, I have a cousin who is an ex-felon and a violent offender at that. He spent nearly 10 years in prison but got into a program and became an asbestos/and other hazardous material worker and makes $25-$35 an hour as an independent contractor. So there are options for ex-offenders for employment in positions that don't risk the general public.
This story is just so sad though. I feel for the remaining family of the victims and the communities.
And FWIW, after just perusing the first paragraph of the first link you posted it says that employers can still run a background check:
In my experience, and I have hired many employees in the state of GA, but we only looked at resumes first anyway and didn't force people to fill out applications. If we liked them and offered them the job, the candidate would have to pass a drug screening, MVR check, AND a criminal background check (we rarely hired felons due to the nature of work - property management, I never hired anyone who had a felon or who couldn't pass a drug screen).
So basically in DC they now do a process that just eliminates applications it seems. Similar to what many employers already do anyway.
The bold part sounds like a waste of time for all those involved. Why go through the motions if a prison record is a disqualifying factor?
I agree with the OP that ban the box is crazy.
anyone convicted of a violent crime needs to be forced to provide that information to potential employers.
HOWEVER
(watch for whiplash im swerving left)
I think we have a plague where young men convicted of a single non-violent pot related felony cant get jobs and that drives them into a life of desperation.
so... that is an area where I think society would benefit from reforms that provide a path to expunge that kind of conviction.
I agree with the OP that ban the box is crazy.
anyone convicted of a violent crime needs to be forced to provide that information to potential employers.
HOWEVER
(watch for whiplash im swerving left)
I think we have a plague where young men convicted of a single non-violent pot related felony cant get jobs and that drives them into a life of desperation.
so... that is an area where I think society would benefit from reforms that provide a path to expunge that kind of conviction.
They are only get desperate because of how they handle their past during the interview and if they REALLY want to make a change in their lives.
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