There are a range of factors that should influence an employer's decision to hire a particular applicant, including his or her criminal record and its bearing on the job in question. States should prohibit categorical employment bans based solely upon conviction records, except in very narrowly tailored situations. For instance, while it may be appropriate to prohibit anyone convicted of a child sex offense from working in day care, it would be unreasonable to say that anyone who has ever been convicted of any offense should be prohibited from working with children. States should instead require employers to make individualized determinations that consider the relationship between the person's conviction history and the position or license sought, including whether the conviction demonstrates that the applicant would be a threat to the safety of those around him or her or cannot be trusted to perform the job in question.

A number of states have enacted laws requiring occupational licensing agencies and public and private employers to make individualized assessments about job applicants' conviction records, rather than allowing them to have blanket bans against hiring anyone with a criminal record. These laws recognize that people should be treated individually (based on his or her individual history, merit, and circumstances) but that employers should also retain discretion to decide whom to hire. In order to justify excluding an applicant on the basis of a criminal conviction, Kansas requires that the conviction be reasonably related to the applicant's trustworthiness or the safety or well-being of employees or customers. ^[1]   Hawaii allows employers to consider only rationally related criminal convictions that occurred within the past 10 years and only after a conditional offer of employment has been made. ^[2]  

Even in the absence of state laws that preclude employers from eliminating people with criminal records from consideration, employers should be encouraged to consider applicants individually. Workforce specialists or third-party intermediaries can play an important role in making sure appropriate referrals are made to employers so that only qualified, job-ready applicants whose convictions are either very old or not directly related to the job in question are sent to the employer. Further, employers tend to set aside many of their general concerns about hiring former prisoners as they learn more about the individual cases of potential employees. Workforce specialists should therefore provide information about the potential employee to employers including the exact nature of his or her crime, his or her criminal record (as well as what to look for when reviewing a criminal record), and whether he or she is on parole or probation. Case studies about the exceptional skills of specific released individuals should also be included; employers will be more willing to trust the system if they see some hiring success stories.

Example: Employer Outreach, Safer Foundation (IL)

In marketing to employers, Safer uses a brochure outlining cost-effective staffing solutions and bottom-line results. It lists the various employer incentives and employee programs beneficial to employers. In addition, Safer hosts an annual employer recognition event that honors employers and allows them to see the impact of the opportunities they provide.

Example: Support and Training Result In Valuable Employees (National)

Support and Training Result in Valuable Employees (STRIVE), a privately funded, nonprofit employment service, builds its relationship with employers one client at a time. In marketing to employers, STRIVE focuses on operating as a business and responding to employer needs for education, information, and support, even though it charges no fee.

States can further support the employment of qualified people with criminal records by providing a way for them to demonstrate rehabilitation. Arizona, Illinois, Nevada, New York, New Jersey, and California offer individuals with criminal records certificates of rehabilitation which effectively lift statutory bars to jobs or licenses that result from a conviction history. Certificates of rehabilitation also benefit employers, who can retain their discretion to individually assess every applicant and not have to forego the opportunity to hire qualified employees because of federal, state, and local laws or regulations that mandate categorical exclusions based on a criminal record.

In New York, two types of certificates (depending upon the criminal history) are available to remove occupational and licensing bars resulting from a conviction and create a presumption of rehabilitation. ^[3]   In New Jersey, the Parole Board may grant certificates of good conduct to assist a qualified person's rehabilitation by precluding licensing authorities from disqualifying or discriminating against an applicant based upon a criminal conviction. ^[4]   California offers certificates that provide evidence of rehabilitation to people convicted of felony offenses. ^[5]  

To the extent that such programs exist in a given jurisdiction, corrections and workforce authorities should publicize them to people with criminal records. Moreover, the application process should be clear, uniform, and streamlined to facilitate their utility for people searching for jobs and applying for occupational licenses. The state repository of criminal records should be required to include the existence of a certificate of rehabilitation on a person's official state criminal record report.