Former Inmates are Getting Jobs as Employers Ignore Stigma in Bright Economy
Date Posted: May 29, 2019
Posted In: Discussion, Workforce,
From NPR: In 1998, Ichard Oden committed a crime that got him sent away for two decades. He was 19.
He got out of prison in February. Today, he’s a 40-year-old man with very little job experience.
As it turns out, Oden is coming back into society at a time when the economy is booming and attitudes toward people with criminal records are changing.
Unemployment in the Detroit metro area has fallen dramatically, to 4.4% from more than 17% just 10 years ago. Nationwide, it’s dropped to a 50-year low of 3.6%. Many employers say they can’t find enough workers. And for Oden and 20 million or so Americans with a felony record, that might mean a much better shot at getting a job and reintegrating into society.
In an increasingly polarized America, the reintegration of felons is a rare issue that has brought together people from very different political backgrounds.
The Obama administration launched the Fair Chance Business Pledge to eliminate barriers for people with a criminal record. Part of that initiative was “banning the box,” the part of a job application that asks if prospective employees have a criminal record. Companies including Google, Starbucks and Coca-Cola signed the pledge. And so far, 35 states have adopted a version of the ban.