In the United States of America, there is a growing shift towards offering work and job opportunities to felons who have paid their sentence.  Many of these employers who hire felons have signed onto the Fair Chance Pledge, which aims to offer Americans with prior criminal records and convictions a fair chance at employment.

In America, nearly 73.5 million individuals have a criminal record.  That is 29.5% of the entire population.  While we are not going to discuss criminal reforms needed in the justice system, we will discuss the need to offer a second chance to those individuals and the employers who hire felons and others convicted of crimes.

A felony charge can disqualify an individual from many rights and liberties guaranteed in the constitution.  Chief amongst those disqualifications is disenfranchisement or the loss of voting ability.  But in addition, felons can be excluded from obtaining certain licenses and visas, are ineligible to serve on a jury, and are excluded from purchasing firearms and ammunition.  However, some felons are also ineligible to qualify or apply for government assistance or welfare.

With the difficulty many felons find in reintegrating with society after their debts have been paid, the problem can be compounded by their inability to receive welfare and government aid. 

As President Obama remarked, “around 70 million Americans have some sort of criminal record … Now, a lot of time, that record disqualifies you from being a full participant in our society — even if you’ve already paid your debt to society. It means millions of Americans have difficulty even getting their foot in the door to try to get a job much less actually hang on to that job. That’s bad for not only those individuals, it’s bad for our economy. It’s bad for the communities that desperately need more role models who are gainfully employed. So, we’ve got to make sure Americans who’ve paid their debt to society can earn their second chance.”

What is the pledge?

The Fair Chance Business Pledge looks to have businesses take a pledge and a commitment towards providing an opportunity for all individuals, regardless of previous criminal record.  The pledge urges businesses simply promote a fair and equitable hiring process.  This includes a “ban the box”, training of human resources and hiring managers to make fair applicant decisions, allowing for job training and internships to all individuals, utilizing background check providers which are correct, and a push to host job fairs to allow for individuals with previous convictions to apply to these opportunities in person.