Sixteen states do it, big companies such as Walmart and Home Depot as well. Asserting “Americans who have criminal histories face unreasonable barriers that prevent them from securing gainful employment, limiting their ability to care for themselves and their families,” Connecticut’s U.S. Senators Richard Blumenthal and Chris Murphy are urging President Obama to “ban the box” asking job applicants if they’ve had a criminal conviction.
News release:
Today, U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) and U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), along with 25 of their Senate colleagues, urged President Obama to expand job opportunities and reduce recidivism by taking executive action and requiring federal contractors and federal agencies to “ban the box” on job applications. Reforming hiring practices has widespread support from both public and private institutions. Sixteen states, including Connecticut, and more than 100 cities and counties have already begun to implement fair chance hiring practices that prevent job applicants from being asked about prior convictions until later in the hiring process. Many of the nation’s largest employers, including Walmart; Target; Bed, Bath & Beyond; Koch Industries; and Home Depot, have also opted to “ban the box.”
In addition to Blumenthal and Murphy, the letter was signed by U.S. Senators Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Al Franken (D-Minn.), Ed Markey (D-Mass,), Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Tom Udall (D-N.M.), Tom Carper (D-Del.), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Joe Manchin (D-W. Va.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Bernie Sanders (D-Vt.), and Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii).
“Our nation’s legal and moral underpinnings provide that anyone who makes a mistake and learns from it deserves a second chance. Yet, too often, Americans who have criminal histories face unreasonable barriers that prevent them from securing gainful employment, limiting their ability to care for themselves and their families. We urge you to use your power as our nation’s Chief Executive to require that federal contractors incorporate “fair chance” hiring practices and require federal contractors and agencies from refraining to ask job applicants about prior convictions until later in the hiring process. These reforms would restore hope and opportunity to those with criminal records who face substantial obstacles in their quest to be productive members of their communities,” the senators wrote.
“Ban the Box” refers to the section on job application forms that inquires whether the applicant has ever been convicted. For the more than 70 million Americans who have criminal convictions, this barrier to employment so early in the hiring process can serve as categorical disqualification, and limits their ability to provide for themselves and their families. Studies have shown that an inability to find employment is one of the leading causes of reoffending.
Under “ban the box,” employers would retain the ability to inquire about past convictions or conduct background checks regarding a potential employee before making an employment decision.
We are seeing rioting in Baltimore and we will have seen it in other cities in America. We will see rioting in other cities in the future. Who is to blame for this unrest and with the anger in the minority communities? There really is no difficult answer to this problem, THAT’S RIGHT THERE IS NO DIFFICULT ANSWER.
The politicians we send to Washington are to blame for these riots. People living in poverty have no hope of escaping it as long as they can’t find a job. Washington has allowed and is allowing American companies to move from the USA to foreign countries where they hire cheap labor. There are more cars built in Mexico than in the USA. GE, which has 37 acres here in Bridgepor, is building a billion dollar factory in a foreign country. The list of companies goes on and on. These are factory jobs that should go to Americans first. Please don’t start up about isolationism, that’s bullshit the politicians want us to believe.
Who among us would not like a manufacturing job that pays a living wage? The politicians from both parties want to let the jobs go overseas because their rich friends get richer.
We have had Democratic rule in this city about 50 years out of 56 years and where are we? We are hoping for a development that has been in the works for 30 years.
We have had a Democratic governor except for two brief periods and what have they done to bring jobs to Connecticut? Nothing, they have taxed us to death and driven jobs out.
I don’t know about anyone else but I am tired of robo calls from foreigners selling American products or services.