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Avoid blanket exclusion policies Use individualized assessments EEOC Guidance: Individualized assessments help avoid disparate impact Individual Assessment FACTORS TO CONSIDER Your goal is a fair and effective hiring process that benefits both your business and society at large. Each individual is different Public policy to employer: Hire a felon! The failure to hire ex-offenders may reflect discrimination. Anti-Discrimination Law is the tool used to promote employment: Public policy aims to expand jobs Facing the Reality of Ex-Offenders in Your Workplace How to Hire ‘Second-Chance’ Workers THE NUMBERS DON'T LIE Your labor pool includes a large number of ex-offenders. IS HIRING ex-offenders TOO risky? If yes, it’s tempting to just exclude them. But… for people with criminal histories: 12 million are felony convictions More than 1 in 4 Americans has a criminal record Title VII FCRA EEOC Guidance Ban the Box Employers face a dilemma: OR Exclude to reduce liability in hiring…. Hire to avoid discrimination. Excluding ALL ex-offenders is rarely feasible. And it's not the right thing to do in most cases. Understand the point of public policy. Focus on the individual. There is a path to this goal: Title VII of the Civil Rights Act Follow a legally-compliant process. Use research- based background screening methods. EEOC defines 2 types of discrimination Factors in a typical lawsuit 2 LESSONS Occurs when an employer treats an applicant or employee differently because of his or her race, national origin, or another protected basis. Employer excludes all felons. Members of protected classes are more likely to have felony convictions. Therefore, they are disproportionately excluded. EEOC files a lawsuit charging disparate impact discrimination. Occurs when the employer’s neutral policy or practice has the effect of disproportionately screening out a Title VII-protected group and the employer fails to demonstrate that the policy or practice is job related for the position in question and consistent with business necessity. Disparate Treatment Disparate Impact Do standard background screening on all applicants Do an individualized assessment if applicant has criminal history Exclude only for job-related factors that are a business necessity Nature and gravity of the offense Time that has passed since the conviction or conduct Nature of the job held or sought 1 2 3 Green vs. Missouri Railroad decision (1975): “The Green Factors” Character: references training job performance • Employment • Employed continuously 5 to 8 quarters • Age 27 or over • Education and training Research on factors leading to lower recidivism rates: At some point, the risks of hiring an ex-offender who has not been re-arrested are the same as any other person of the same age, gender and background. The Redemption Point ...burglary is ...robbery is ...aggravated assault is 21.8 years of age 25.7 years of age 22.3 years of age Research on 88,000 individuals: The Redemption Point for... How to Hire an Ex-Offender Employers have rights: Employers need to use a consistent process: To use background checks To exclude applicants based on background data Treat every applicant the same. Background screening is crucial for ex-offenders… ...but do NOT use a blanket exclusion. Make decisions on factors that are job-related and a business necessity. Do individualized assessments. Follow the FCRA consumer report process: Notify the applicant about potential adverse action. Make final exclusion decision only at end of process. Give time for applicant to refute or explain findings. IT’s your call Hire ex-offenders or not. The process matters either way: Reduce your risks: Lower negligence risk Lower discrimination risk Improve hiring quality Hiring the right ex-offender can be good for business and good for the community. Make better hiring decisions. www.proformascreening.com
