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Providing employers with documentation that job applicants who have criminal records have turned their lives around could lessen the impact of Iowa’s projected worker shortage, cut down recidivism rates and save the state some money, said Anthony Lowery of the Chicago-based Safer Foundation.
Lowery, director of policy and advocacy at the foundation, discussed two certificate programs and other initiatives in Illinois that help remove employment barriers for people with criminal records. He discussed the issues with 40 hiring managers who attended a meeting by the Society of Human Resource Management. The meeting, organized by the group’s Diversity Committee, was held Tuesday at Iowa Workforce Development in Des Moines.
State Reps. Ako Abdul-Samad and Wayne Ford, both Democrats from Des Moines, are co-sponsoring legislation this year that would create a certificate program in Iowa. Details of Iowa’s proposal are still being drafted.
“The criminal record is the biggest scarlet letter for employment opportunities for people in this country,” Lowery said. The foundation provides extensive re-entry programs.
Illinois has two certificates. The Certificate of Relief from Disabilities helps ex-offenders obtain licenses in certain occupations they may have been trained for in prison, such as a barber or carpenter. The application allows the ex-offender to provide evidence that he has improved his life. The certificate is given to the employer and increases the chance that the applicant will obtain the license and meet the “morals clause” required for licensure. Presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama supported the legislation, Lowery said.
The second certificate is called a Certificate of Good Conduct. Ex-Offenders can obtain one after three years and a prison review board hearing. The board assesses documentation brought by the ex-offender to document rehabilitation, such as completion of treatment programs and community-based correctional programs.
“The person can take it to an employer to relieve the barriers to employment,” Lowery said.
Lowery discussed the political pitfalls of drafting the legislation. He said the certificates were available initially for ex-offenders who had one felony conviction, but that made the majority of ex-offenders ineligible to apply because they often had multiple convictions. Advocates are trying to expand the legislation to include an unlimited number of convictions, but have faced tough opposition, he said.
He encouraged Iowa employers to take part in helping draft Iowa’s proposed certificate program and expand employment opportunities to ex-offenders. The Safer Foundation is providing technical assistance to Iowa officials.
Note: A job fair for ex-offenders is scheduled to take place February 28 in Des Moines.
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