It is close to a criminological truism that the lack of a legitimate job fosters criminality and, conversely, that holding a legitimate job diminishes criminal conduct. Consequently, many criminologists and social reformers have long advocated programs to expand employment opportunities for ex-offenders, particularly for those who have served prison time. Strategies for improving employability of ex-offenders include providing ex-offenders with basic education and job-specific training, assisting in identifying potential employment opportunities, interceding on the job seeker’s behalf with prospective employers, and eliminating de jure and de facto employment discrimination against ex-offenders. Many federal and state laws make ex-offenders, or at least certain categories of ex-offenders, ineligible to obtain employment licenses or to work in organizations serving children, the elderly, and other vulnerable populations (Love, 2006). In fact, such laws have proliferated during the past two decades on account of tough-on-crime politics and heightened post-9/11 security concerns. The reentry movement has cast a bright light on these collateral consequences of conviction and has urged a wholesale review and reform of them (American Bar Association, 2004; Travis, 2005). We agree with reentry proponents that de jure prohibitions on exoffender employment are far too overbroad and that many should be repealed. In this article, however, we focus on de facto discrimination to highlight a recent trend for cities to voluntarily stop asking for criminal background information from applicants seeking city employment and, in some instances, employment with vendors who contract with the city (National Employment Law Project (NELP), 2007). By recognizing that society has much to lose by excluding ex-offenders from legitimate employment opportunities, several cities such as Boston, San Francisco, and Minneapolis have agreed to “ban the box” on initial job applications that ask applicants about past criminal convictions. These cities have committed themselves not to discriminate against ex-offenders and not to consider an applicant’s prior criminal record unless it is clearly related to the requirements of a particular position. This welcome step, if successful, might persuade other public and private employers to stop discriminating against job applicants with a criminal record.
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