Legislation May Make It Easier for Convicted Felons To Be Employed
Have you ever been convicted of a felony?
Perhaps for the vast majority of job-seekers in the United States, that familiar question is an easy one to ignore because the honest answer is “no.”
But what happens for the millions of individuals for whom the answer is “yes?” “You might not even get the interview,” says Akil, a 30-year-old convicted felon who recently scored an $8-an-hour job busting suds at an Italian restaurant in Greater Washington, D.C., even though he has three solid years of experience as a cook.
The problem with Akil’s culinary experience is that he doesn’t really feel that it’s advantageous to talk about where he got it — at least not yet.
If you look at his resume, it says that he served as a cook from January 2003 to November 2006 at a “federal building” in Hazelton, West Virginia. The actual name of this “federal building”? USP Hazelton. That’s “USP” as in United States Penitentiary — not exactly the kind of place that endears job applicants to prospective employers.
That’s why Akil is encouraged by the growing movement throughout the United States to “ban the box” that asks job applicants about their criminal records until after they’ve been deemed qualified for the job.
Washington, D.C., where Akil resides, is among the latest municipalities to consider “ban the box” legislation. The hope is that the private sector will follow.
Advocates for low-wage workers say such measures will help level the playing field for formerly incarcerated individuals.
“The reason that we feel it’s so important to ban the box is that we need to ensure that people re-entering their communities are able to make a meaningful commitment to providing for their families and re-entering society,” says Madeline Negihly, staff attorney at the National Employment Law Project (NELP). “A good job is the best way to do that.”
Officials in a growing number of municipalities and states agree and have implemented various forms of “ban the box” policy and legislation.
The City of Chicago, for instance, banned the box on city jobs in 2007. "Implementing this new policy won't be easy, but it's the right thing to do,” Chicago Mayor Richard Daley says of the policy, according to a NELP policy brief. “We cannot ask private employers to consider hiring former prisoners unless the City practices what it preaches."
The policy has been implemented on a broader level statewide as well. For instance, effective November 4, 2010, a new law will prohibit Massachusetts employers from asking any criminal history questions on their initial application forms.
In the same vein, efforts are afoot at the national level to give ex-cons some relief in the job application process.
For instance, the Fresh Start Act of 2010 — introduced U.S. Rep. Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.) would enable convicted felons to expunge their records if they’ve only been convicted of a nonviolent offense and met other conditions, such as fulfilling all requirements of his or her sentence and paying off all court-related fines and court-ordered restitution.
Such efforts have not emerged without controversy, including among those who see the “box” as a “legitimate hiring and recruitment tool.” Akil, who showed a reporter dozens upon dozens of job applications he’s filled out over the years since he’s been released from prison for a drug dealing conviction, disagrees, saying he believes his felony conviction is the reason it’s been so difficult to find work.
A former cocaine dealer now certified as a food handler, Akil says he’s encouraged by the story of former convict-turned-celebrity chef Jeff Henderson, whose book, titled, Cooked: From the Streets to the Stove, from Cocaine to Foie Gras, he read while incarcerated.
Akil has no doubts in his culinary skills, noting that he’s already cooked for one of the toughest dining audiences in the world. “They’re not going to sugarcoat nothing in prison,” Akil said. “If it’s shit, they’ll tell you that. They said, ‘This is the best food I ever had.’”
But it’s not a story he’s inclined to tell during a job interview. Asked why he applied for a dishwasher position instead of a position as a chef, Akil says: “I just wanted to get my foot in the door.”
Jamaal Abdul-Alim is a staff writer for Campus Progress.
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