29 ms·

Launch HN: 70MillionJobs (YC S17) – Job board for people with criminal records

• iagooar 9y ago
  Love what you are doing. This is the kind of startup I love to see being pushed forward. With lower entry barriers for tech startups, one would expect to see more startups that fight for a better world, instead of startups who fight for selling your data faster, or detecting your face better to overlay a duckface on top of it. This is why seeing a startup like yours makes me hopeful. Wish you best of luck!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Thanks so much for your kind words! I appreciate it.
• brndnmtthws 9y ago
  This is great. Not much else to say about it.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Thank you
• javajosh 9y ago
  Hey Richard, love this idea. I firmly believe in the notion that once you've paid your debt to society you should be able to participate in society as anyone else would. That this is not the fact is atrocious to me. Do you need a remote full-stack programmer?
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Thank you for your insight. When the dust settles, we should talk.
    • devrandomguy 9y ago
      Another full stack dev here, I would also love to help with something meaningful. Feel free to PM me in the future, if I can be of assistance. Remote, from Canada, Pacific timezone.
  • maerF0x0 9y ago
    how is doing time "repaying a debt to society"? Seems to me incarceration is a proving ground to show you're no longer dangerous, _then_ one can begin to repay whatever injustices occurred?
    • leesalminen 9y ago
      That's not how it's framed in the US. Incarceration is purposefully made as horrible as possible (rape, beatings, inedible food, solitary confinement) to ensure full debt repayment prior to release. I agree, it's disgusting, but that's the status quo.
      • maerF0x0 9y ago
        Also how is eye for an eye "repayment" . If someone steals my car I dont want them raped-- I want my car back, plus a few bucks to cover the taxis I took while it was gone.
• pertymcpert 9y ago
  Best of luck!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    thanks very much
• RBBronson123 9y ago
  I'm looking forward to hearing your feedback and am happy to answer any questions about 70millionjobs, the challenges faced by people with criminal records, and ideas you may have to improve our site.
• aantix 9y ago
  Just curious, how do you know that the job postings you're listing accept those with criminal backgrounds? Is this a list of curated companies? Or is there something that you're parsing out that denotes this acceptability?
  • hnrich 9y ago
    I'm curious about this as well because the two listings I clicked on had requirements like "must be able to pass a criminal background check" and "must have stable work history" as their first hiring criteria.
  • azernik 9y ago
    There may be several factors going into this; for example, in the Bay Area, positions in the city of SF are prohibited from considering conviction history that is not "directly related" to the job. It also suggests specific language for including this information on job postings and corporate websites. I would love to hear from company founders about what factors they use to discover this information in their external job listings that are not on jurisdictions like this. Source: http://www.millerlawgroup.com/publications/alerts/San-Franciscos-Fair-Chance-Ordinance.html http://www.millerlawgroup.com/publications/alerts/San-Franci...
  • rewrew 9y ago
    The site as it stands doesn't, as looking at the site currently has plenty of jobs that requires passing a criminal background check. It appears this site is more idea than execution at this point.
• brightball 9y ago
  A friend of mine finally had his record cleared of incidents from when he was 19-20. He took courses to learn to program but even now it's still hard for him to get a job because people want to know about the huge gap in his employment history from when nobody would hire him.
  • joshbaptiste 9y ago
    Your friend just needs to say he was doing consultant work for himself during these periods.
    • tomjen3 9y ago
      And he can, honestly, say that he sucks at getting clients for his consulting, but that he is good at coding.
      • kchoudhu 9y ago
        "I can't discuss who my other clients are with you, but I'd be happy to talk to you about the challenges I faced." Proceed to bullshit.
  • banned1 9y ago
    "Incidents"? You mean his crimes? No need to abstract reality.
    • wutbrodo 9y ago
      Doesn't "had his record cleared" make it obvious that we're talking about his crimes? This seems needlessly pedantic.
  • Mz 9y ago
    "Personal crisis." I was a homemaker for a lot of years. I also happened to be too sick to hold down a job during that time, but homemaker sounds so much better on a resume. Find a preferably true and accurate description that is palatable to employers. Then realize it is tough all over at the moment. LOTS of people are having trouble getting hired at all.
• tixocloud 9y ago
  This is a great initiative and hopefully will lead to a positive change for everyone involved. Will you also be thinking about training/education opportunities for applicants?
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    That is something that has occupied more and more of my thoughts. thanks for asking
    • tixocloud 9y ago
      Not a problem. I've always genuinely felt that all people are good people and that when given a chance to integrate and succeed in society, they can make it. Some are just less fortunate to not acquire skills that are needed for jobs today but give them training and more importantly, give them confidence in themselves that there is always hope and I am sure their lives can be transformed. I just read this story and thought it might be interesting for you: http://www.sgi.org/people-and-perspectives/changing-lives-in-prison.html http://www.sgi.org/people-and-perspectives/changing-lives-in...
• bduerst 9y ago
  Have you thought about collaborating with CEO works? https://ceoworks.org/ https://ceoworks.org/
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    We are currently doing just that, in NY and CA. Their NY director of Workforce Development is on our Advisory Board.
• ianbicking 9y ago
  I was curious about local jobs, so I put in "Minnesota" and get to https://www.70millionjobs.com/search/-/Minnesota https://www.70millionjobs.com/search/-/Minnesota – but then when I put more search terms into keywords I keep getting the same results (including keywords that I can tell have associated jobs). I'm guessing it's falling back to ZipRecruiter entirely, but it's also not searching those entries.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Thanks for this question. We are not yet working in Minnesota (we're currently focused on CA and NY Metropolitan area), so search results outside those parameters are not good. We're working on it.
• efdee 9y ago
  I very much like what you're doing for those of us who've made wrong choices in the past. However, I am a little bit concerned what drives a company to go to a site -especially made for those people- looking for future employees.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Great question. First of all, while we believe that there's a morality issue here, along with good corporate citizenry, ultimately, we have to serve a viable HR value to corporate America. In fact, there are some 6 million jobs currently unfilled in this country--many of the sort our applicants would excel at. Not filling jobs costs businesses enormously. So we hope to bring that value. At the same time, progressive companies conscious of their corporate issue may feel (or may not) that making an affirmative statement like this hold inherent value, as well.
  • losteric 9y ago
    The hardest workers are people who are (re)building their lives from nothing... Largely immigrants and ex-cons.
    • RBBronson123 9y ago
      In my experience, that's a very true observation
• andrew_wc_brown 9y ago
  I love seeing startups who can actually transform lives. Its sad being a developer with no technical limitations but have no useful ideas.
• hwoolery 9y ago
  I love the idea, and I really want your company to succeed. I don't really consider myself very easily offended or PC, but I thought it seemed a little stereotypical that the first two images in the hero were black people. I think that should be changed as quickly as possible if you don't want to get any backlash. My two cents : )
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    I appreciate this observation, but our prisons are predominately filled with people of color.
    • banned1 9y ago
      hmmm, is this correct? It seems the real proportion is 39/40/19 among Whites/Blacks/Hispanics. https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/rates.html https://www.prisonpolicy.org/reports/rates.html
      • 24gttghh 9y ago
        From The Bureau of Justice Statistics, the "Prisoners in 2015" report, table 8, page 13 [0]: >Percent of sentenced prisoners under the jurisdiction of state or federal correctional authorities, by age, sex, race, and Hispanic origin, December 31, 2015 446,700 white male prisoners 501,300 black male prisoners 301,500 hispanic male prisoners 122,400 other male prisoners Which means male adults of color (925,200) make up more than double the male white adult (446,700) state/federal prison population. [0]https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/p15.pdf https://www.bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/p15.pdf The more disturbing statistic being that 1,745/100,000 black adults are incarcerated, compared to 317/100,000 white adults. Female incarceration rates do not follow this same trend identically according to the data, and they make up only ~7% of the total correctional population.
    • hwoolery 9y ago
      Really? From what I understand, the number of black inmates in prison is roughly equal to the number of white inmates (about 40%/40%). There is a large disparity in terms of the incarceration rate of people of color, but your above statement is not true.
• dvt 9y ago
  This is awesome, congratulations on your launch!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    thank you!
• hirsin 9y ago
  I think this is awesome, and I was relieved to see the focus on non-white collar crime. Some questions that I think are systemic to the entire area - The companies hiring are at somewhat of an advantage (they can hire anyone, the employees have more limited options). How do you ensure they get a fair offer, and not, like migrant labor, receive a below market offer? Would the marketplace effect here help prevent that? (edit - looking at the website, duh, it looks like you've solved this - awesome - and found good companies.) Your revenue model is based on companies laying to get access to these prospective employees - how do you get past the stigma (without breaching q1 above)? I like the municipality revenue model - it would be awesome to see them as "reverse recruiters" we're they pay every time someone gets a job.
  • tomjen3 9y ago
    >How do you ensure they get a fair offer, and not, like migrant labor, receive a below market offer? This will be legal employment, so hopefully the abuses resulting from migrant employment won't happen, but the salary they are getting will be below the "normal" market price, at least for a long time - and this is a good thing, since they would otherwise not be hired at all.
    • RBBronson123 9y ago
      We can't ensure they get a fair offer, other than by providing information and access to resources to address such injustices. I judge our success one job at a time, and one repaired family at a time.
      • hirsin 9y ago
        Oof - unsolicited advice, but that combined with your acknowledgement of racism in the system will have some people calling you the plantation market. Even though you're not saying it explicitly, what I just read is that implicitly your revenue model is based on giving companies access to a below market cost labor force that's predominantly POC. While I lean towards the idea that its better they have access to a job than not, I think it's also vital to pursue full wages, rather than partial wages despite their debt to society being paid.
• Invictus0 9y ago
  Do you employ people with criminal records? As an employer, I want to hire the best people so my company can be successful. Why would I hire anyone from your site when there are plenty of other candidates elsewhere? Do you think people will try to use your site to disqualify potential hires (i.e. use it as a do-not-hire list so those registered with the site can specifically be avoided)? How will you prevent this from occurring? Why would a company that doesn't care about criminal records advertise with you? Wouldn't it make more sense for them to advertise on a generic job board, take the best resumes, and sort out criminal history issues as they arise? Does your site allow employers to see what a job seeker's crime was, or any other info related to that that other job boards wouldn't provide?
  • angersock 9y ago
    Why would having a criminal record automatically preclude you from hiring these folks? Hell, Hans Reiser wrote a great filesystem and he murdered his wife. John Draper and Kevin Mitnick would probably both be good hires for certain roles. Steve Jobs could've been easily arrested for drug use.
  • someguy101010 9y ago
    "As an employer, I want to hire the best people so my company can be successful. Why would I hire anyone from your site when there are plenty of other candidates elsewhere?" Not associated with that company but one reason to hire a convict is that you get a pretty decent tax break[0] out of it [0]https://www.doleta.gov/business/incentives/opptax/ https://www.doleta.gov/business/incentives/opptax/
  • DanBC 9y ago
    > Why would I hire anyone from your site when there are plenty of other candidates elsewhere? Someone with criminal record has something to prove, so will be grateful for the job and work hard.
• freeslugs 9y ago
  Can you sort by criminal record? e.g. Only white collar crimes.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    No, we believe everyone deserves a second chance. It's a challenging moral quandary, I admit, but I for one am no one to pass judgement.
    • BearGoesChirp 9y ago
      What about cases such as people who commit crimes against children? Would at the very least you say they don't deserve a second chance at working with children?
  • dsfyu404ed 9y ago
    If you have a resume you can typically find a local newspaper report of whatever the crime was even if their name is John smith. That said, local newspaper stuff is a horrible source of information. "Mr. Doe was charged with the entire book" routinely turns into a plea deal for the smallest charge on the list.
• austenallred 9y ago
  I would imagine the difficult aspect of this two-sided market would be employers. Not to be obtuse, but what incentive would an employer have to hire someone with criminal records?
  • burkaman 9y ago
    They have an incentive to hire someone, and often can't find qualified candidates through traditional channels. In purely economic terms, I'm willing to bet some people with criminal records are willing to work for less than someone with the same qualifications and a clean record.
    • austenallred 9y ago
      Hmm, so moneyball/arbitrage based on criminal history? That's interesting; would be curious to hear if there's another side of the story as well.
      • mst 9y ago
        Also, given employee churn and training costs are a thing - if ex-con workers are more likely to stay because it's harder for them to get a job elsewhere, you're more likely to keep the better ones. Whether/how the math works there I dunno, it just occurred to me as another possible factor.
  • someguy101010 9y ago
    I commented this somewhere else, but I figured I would drop this link here for you too, https://www.doleta.gov/business/incentives/opptax/ https://www.doleta.gov/business/incentives/opptax/. You can get a pretty decent tax break if you hire a felon.
    • RBBronson123 9y ago
      very true
• sharemywin 9y ago
  seems like a lot of what you'll need to do is on the employer education. please excuse my ignorance, I hope their not offensive, I'm just trying to help. 1. is there any extra liability for the employer if they knowingly hire someone formerly incarcerated and they commit a crime while working for them. 2. aren't some kind of tax credits for hiring formerly incarcerated incarcerated people. 3. is it only w2 or do you allow 1099 opportunities.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Actually, a federal bonding program has existed for decades, to indemnify employers making "at-risk" hires. Interestingly, on a very few claims have ever been filed. It's a myth that these folks will be criminals on the job. In fact, studies out of Harvard and U of Mass suggest that they actually can make better employees than those without records. There are indeed federal tax credits (Work Opportunity Tax Credits) available. Generally, we're talking w2 jobs (which are also a requirement of parole/probation, generally)
    • sharemywin 9y ago
      Thanks for the clarifications. - It's a myth that these folks will be criminals on the job. I wasn't trying to imply they were, I was more thinking of a company getting dragged into a witch hunt. Regardless of the population there's always a bad apple just like there's a diamond.
• lbhnact 9y ago
  Just want to add support. One of my childhood friends has a felony from when he was an overly-rambunctious teenager that he still gets punished for - including being kicked off AirBnB - for something he stole more than 20 years ago. Despite this, he's a very successful leader in mental health services management. So many people deserve a chance to redeem themselves from being 'branded', yet are denied the exact opportunities that would allow them to do so. This problem goes back a long, long ways.[1] Anything you can do to help is great. Best of luck! [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Branded_Man https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Branded_Man
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    I will surely look into this. Thanks for sharing.
  • justadeveloper2 9y ago
    As someone who broke a whole lot of laws in his late teens and got off pretty easy for all of it, I wholeheartedly agree. They could have thrown the book at me but they didn't. Also, it helps if you don't confess to anything and hire a good attorney even if you end up taking a plea. Let's face it, America sucks in a ton of ways and the biggest crooks are bankers and people in finance--they stole billions and got away with it over and over again. So nothing else quite compares except maybe whatever goes on with the CIA and drugs.
    • pm90 9y ago
      While I agree there are bigger crooks who go unpunished, the solution is not to let the smaller crooks go free, but to also catch the bigger ones. BTW just to be clear, I'm not advocating harsher punishment, just equal punishment.
      • jaclaz 9y ago
        The issue is not with the severity of punishment, it is with the continuity of punishment. This is from G.K.Chesterton, around 1907, "The Perpetuation of Punishment": https://books.google.it/books?id=QtWvMclbR9YC&pg=PA504H7CQ#v=onepage&q&f=false https://books.google.it/books?id=QtWvMclbR9YC&pg=PA504H7CQ#v...
• efficax 9y ago
  p.s. it's a safe haven.
  • dang 9y ago
    Ah yes. Typo fixed. Thanks!
• angersock 9y ago
  This is really cool, and I hope that your platform takes off! The SMS integration for texting is also a nice touch. :) One thing I wonder about is if folks in our industry would be more willing to have an felon of some variety working with them than somebody who's been tarred with the racist/sexist/conservative label?
  • banned1 9y ago
    Same question I had! Likely answer is YES (at least on HN boards and opinions to drive appearances, maybe not hiring for real).
• sagivo 9y ago
  happy to see you made it to YC, good luck!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    thank you The YC experience has been great and everyone's been very supportive
• nulagrithom 9y ago
  I went through an IT technical degree at a community college. Three of my classmates were timing their graduation to the year their felony fell off background checks. These guys spent 5 years grinding it out at whatever shit job would hire them just to spend 2 more in school + working with the hope of getting a simple rack & stack job, all because of some mistake they made in their late teens/early twenties. It was the exact same story 3 times, and all involving drug offenses. It really gave me a different perspective on the situation. I don't think these 3 people should've been sidelined for 7 years. They could've been productive members of society well before that. Keeping them out of the skilled/professional workforce is painful. This could be a huge untapped pool of candidates, as long as companies are willing to take the risk. I hope it takes off.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Thank you for sharing that. It's a common story. Attitudes are changing quickly, so I hold out hope. I very much appreciate your support.
    • brooklyn_ashey 9y ago
      It would be so great if attitudes were changing quickly in a positive direction. In tech, it is still impossible to get your first job after a career change as a woman, a person of color, or a person over say 35. Many of these people fall into one or all three of these categories. In addition to that, they have this ridiculous other hurdle to clear, and tech is still trying to figure out if women can do any technical work at all. It is great that people are making resources like this-- and for veterans, but I'm afraid that without penalties or major financial advantages for companies supporting "equality" and "diversity" it's gonna take longer than anyone actually has before homelessness. i wish we could find a way to get financial penalties/incentives for moral action to amplify the voices of the marginalized in tech. Ideas? Any takers on a partnership toward this? I'm fed up with companies not being held to account on this score. I may have to join Rosie O'Donnel's womens' party, since it seems it may take that kind of measure.
      • 9y ago
• stillhere 9y ago
  Why buy a domain name for a number that will fluctuate over time?
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    My greatest pleasure will be the day I have to buy 60millionjobs.com, 50mill....
• inetknght 9y ago
  > So we created a "save haven" where all parties knew the score Does that mean that employers know what offenses were committed, and how long ago? Or does it just mean that they know that the candidate has been convicted of something, but figuring out whether that's a liability to the business or not needs to be discussed?
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Aside from any legal/HR consideration, we feel that everyone deserves a second chance, so we don't discriminate based upon the nature of the crime (but believe me, this is not an easy issue to reconcile). Ultimately, it'll be between the applicant and employer to resolve this. As it relates to liability to the business, there's a federal bonding program that has existed for decades, indemnifying employers from making at-risk hires. Interestingly, over this period of time, only just a few claims have every been made. The facts are that folks with jobs almost never recidivate. In fact, studies are now showing that these folks, for certain jobs, actually may be better employees. Hiring them is very good business.
    • chrissnell 9y ago
      My father owns a retail business that has four stores and employs a bunch of hourly workers. After growing up around the business and working there in my teens and twenties, I feel pretty confident that the risk of a second-chance felon is probably no more than the risk of any average off-the-street hourly worker. Bad apples show up all of the time. They steal a little money or some inventory, get fired, and life goes on. The risk is far greater for an ex-con: why would they risk going back to prison and losing a good job that gave them a second chance over a little money in the register or some inventory?
      • RBBronson123 9y ago
        Your father's experience is no exception, and you're right. Generally speaking, given the opportunity, these folks stay out of trouble.
  • 9y ago
• MentallyRetired 9y ago
  Love it
• deepnotderp 9y ago
  Just wanted to be another HN-er voicing my support for what you're doing :) Good luck and i hope you're successful!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    thank you very much
• jakozaur 9y ago
  Isn't yet another case that startup is trying to fix systematic screwup of law in the USA? In USA once you got criminal record, by default it stays for rest of life with you. Implications of that may be even more severe than actual punishment. On the other hand in most of the European countries criminal records are limited and after X years they disappear and you can't legally discriminate based on that. Some ppl will do something stupid at some point in their life and get a criminal record. Not giving them another chance is a major problem and actually can cause a lot of damage for everyone.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    I don't know about being "yet another case..." This is something that has affected me, my family and many friends square on, and I'm compelled to try to improve things. There are more and more people like you who clearly "get it," so I have hope.
  • jaredhansen 9y ago
    >Isn't yet another case that startup is trying to fix systematic screwup of law in the USA? Two thoughts: 1) "systematic screwup of law in the USA" is a pretty good description; another might be "massive market opportunity" 2) "startup trying to [take advantage of market inefficiencies created by] systematic screwup of law in the USA" is also a pretty good description of drug traffickers of all kinds. (I'm not passing judgment; just making an observation. The meta observation is that you can't cheat reality, so when law gets out of whack the gap between Ideal and Actual creates an inefficiency, which savvy entrepreneurs can profit by bridging).
    • Zyst 9y ago
      >systematic screwup of law in the USA" is a pretty good description; another might be "massive market opportunity" The way Americans have the capacity to acknowledge something intrinsically fucked up about their society, and see it as a business opportunity regardless is something I both admire, and despair over.
      • 9y ago
• deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
• Joeboy 9y ago
  Possibly interesting trivia: There was an '80s British TV series called Inside Out, about people doing what you're doing.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    really? I love British TV!
    • Joeboy 9y ago
      It's http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2674348/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_17 http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2674348/?ref_=fn_tt_tt_17 , although sadly it seems to have mostly vanished into the analogue void. I remember it being pretty good, but I probably had dreadful taste at the time. http://www.rochellestevens.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Credits-Moore.pdf http://www.rochellestevens.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2013/01... has a very slightly better summary (at least enough to prove I'm not making it up).
• tomjen3 9y ago
  Will it be possible to limit job postings to groups of offenders? Eg only non-violent offenders, only people who have been out for at least x years with no new crimes, etc?
• slice_of_life 9y ago
  > 1 in 3 adults—with criminal records I must admit I haven't ever thought about these numbers but it strikes me as insanely high. How can this be explained? Is it a feature of just America or is it reproducible in other countries as well?
  • adventured 9y ago
    This is from 2002, but it makes the point: "... that almost a third of men [in Britain] have a criminal conviction by the age of 30, according to the Home Office. Research on men born in 1953 showed that about 30 per cent had clocked up a standard list offence - one that is dealt with by the courts but excludes minor motoring offences - by their thirtieth birthday. Research in Scotland points in the same direction, suggesting that about 25 per cent of men have a record by age 24." https://www.theguardian.com/money/2002/apr/14/workandcareers.observercashsection https://www.theguardian.com/money/2002/apr/14/workandcareers...
    • dsfyu404ed 9y ago
      Wow, and that was for people born in 1953(!!). The net cast by law enforcement has not gotten smaller since then.
      • justadeveloper2 9y ago
        It's easier to rule over people who live in fear, so just make more things illegal, process people through the system, and you get your total state without anyone raising an eyebrow.
        • RonanTheGrey 9y ago
          Oh they raise eyebrows. The kind that come along with thunderous applause.
  • danesparza 9y ago
    Pretty sure it's uniquely a USA issue: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_incarceration_rate https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_incarceration_ra...
• adventured 9y ago
  Great business concept and social good all in one. With the unemployed persons per job opening at such a low present level (~11-12 year low), I bet you see a lot of employer interest.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    There's great demand, exacerbated by our administration's crack-down on illegal aliens
• MentallyRetired 9y ago
  One of the first things I came across was "Police Officer" in Tallahassee, FL. It's an external link. Part of the description even says: "Have no convictions for any felony, perjury, false statement, or domestic violence. No DUI convictions past ten years. Other arrest histories are reviewed on a case-by-case basis." I love the idea, but it needs a bit more work.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Understood. thanks for letting us know. we're on it.
  • aeorgnoieang 9y ago
    What's the problem specifically with that listing?
    • QuotedForTruth 9y ago
      Its a listing that excludes candidates with felonies on a job board specifically for candidates with felonies.
      • logfromblammo 9y ago
        The OP specifies only "criminal record", which may include both misdemeanors and felonies, with varying degrees of each. Some employers care about any criminal record at all, while others care about felony convictions only. The website itself only mentions "criminal record" and "formerly incarcerated". Perhaps it would be prudent to make filtering easy for "misdemeanors only" jobs and "former felons wanted" jobs?
        • drewmol 9y ago
          Many employers make a distinction between felony and misdemeanor convictions. I encourage more dissection than that. Anecdote: I once stood in front of a Judge who had recently gotten so drunk-->Then decided to drive-->he fell asleep in the middle of a busy intersection (misdemeanor dismissed, "improperly calibrated" portable BAC). I was represented by an attorney who was on probation for a misdemeanor at the time of my sentencing(obstruction of justice, helping facilitate the attempted payment of hush money to a rape victim). It made my 1.5Lb sale of marijuana (felony) not seem so harmful.
• r0m4n0 9y ago
  I ran a search and a few banking jobs came up, one of which mentioned going through a fingerprint background check. I find it hard to believe the US Bank in SF would take me seriously for a teller opening if I had any sort of hangups in my background. I guess this is more of a feature request but... It would be great if you could filter out job postings that were likely just scraped or aggregated from other places! Nice work btw, a great start for a much needed service
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Thanks for your kind words. Yeah, our search algorithm needs lots of work. It'll get there.
• quadcore 9y ago
  Business wise: what make a company want to hire someone with a criminal record?
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    please see response above
  • tapatio 9y ago
    They are cheaper?
• stoic 9y ago
  Bless you, sir.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    bless you, too
• adnam 9y ago
  I wish we heard more stories like these. It might dissuade people from getting involved in drugs in the first place.
  • fhood 9y ago
    No, it probably will not dissuade people all that effectively. That logic is part of the problem.
    • adnam 9y ago
      Well if nothing can be done to dissuade people from criminality we might as well not bother having a criminal justice system and put up with it.
      • fhood 9y ago
        The best way to dissuade people from criminal behaviors (in my opinion) is to make the impetus for the behaviors less attractive.
        • adnam 9y ago
          The best way to stop people doing bad things they want to do is the fear of certain and severe punishment. "Getting involved" is not something that you do by "mistake", you have to want to do it first. The only "mistake" is believing you won't get caught, presumable because so few do.
          • fhood 9y ago
            I genuinely feel that that is not an ethical approach, nor is it any more effective than removing the temptation/ ability to commit certain crimes. In some cases, I agree, severe punishment needs to be codified into the law, but that represents a tiny minority of crimes committed in the US.
            • 9y ago
• darrenf 9y ago
  In the UK, Timpson[0] are a well known example of a national employer not only willing to hire ex-offenders but one that does so proudly, and indeed offer training to prisoners before they are even released. They have tried to convince other companies to follow their lead but with limited success. That said, we also have Clean Sheet[1] through which employers can expressly publicise their willingness to employ ex-offenders. I find it extremely admirable. Best of luck with your approach. [0] See for example this archived blog post: https://web.archive.org/web/20150222003545/http://www.timpson.co.uk/blog/article/79/john-timpson-we-are-making-a-difference-to-the-lives-of-ex-offenders- https://web.archive.org/web/20150222003545/http://www.timpso... or a search for "Timpson ex-offenders" https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=timpson+ex-offenders https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=timpson+ex-offenders [1] http://cleansheet.org.uk/ http://cleansheet.org.uk/
• always_learning 9y ago
  Minor things like small drug offences etc. fine but major crimes? No.
  • TallGuyShort 9y ago
    So are you of the opinion that people who commit major crimes should just be unemployed for life, and no effort should be made to cater to their job search? You don't realize that's a recipe for virtually guaranteed repeat offenders?
    • RonanTheGrey 9y ago
      There will always be a segment of society that were bullied as kids and get their rocks off being as cruel as possible to those they believe deserve it. People like that are not part of this conversation.
      • rhencke 9y ago
        But, the comment you addressed is talking about people who commit major crimes. That is not the same group you are referring to.
        • jacalata 9y ago
          I believe he is referring to the person who posted that comment.
• spraak 9y ago
  > along with a healthy dose of racism Er, when is racism ever healthy?
  • ianleeclark 9y ago
    It means a significant amount of racism.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    good point. never.
  • dajohnson89 9y ago
    See definition 4 https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/healthy https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/healthy
  • nkrisc 9y ago
    A "healthy dose" of something negative is bit of a sarcastic idiom. More generally a "healthy" dose could be described as one that is not lacking in any way.
  • dang 9y ago
    We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14912145 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14912145 and marked it off-topic.
• ictoan 9y ago
  Hi Richard, great idea. I'm a UX designer and want to throw out some suggestions on how to improve the experience of the site. First, use more cheerful/positive messages/visuals. It was a joykill when I checked out your website and there's a sad guy placing his hand on the forehead. Show what's possible. How successful people can be once they get a job.. rather than their current state (unemployment). Don't focus on the current stat, focus on the future desirable state. Also, you need to put more focus on the jobs. List featured jobs to draw people in. Just list some jobs below the search. This will engage the user to explore the site.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    You are so right on all your comments. Soon we'll be re-doing the entire site. Perhaps we can talk in several weeks?
    • iandanforth 9y ago
      I'd add that framing the hiring decision as charity ("giving someone a second chance") could be improved. I'd go for more of a "diamond in the rough" angle. "Find talent everyone else is missing."
      • wavefunction 9y ago
        Fantastic suggestions for these folks!
        • RBBronson123 9y ago
          agreed!
      • rewrew 9y ago
        This should be the site's tagline!
      • Unbeliever69 9y ago
        Absolutely, I think many people would be surprised about the quantity of highly-educated, high-experienced, highly-talented felons there are in our society that are exactly just that, "Diamonds in the rough."
• eizo 9y ago
  Hi Richard, This is a great idea with a nice social cause. Also,from a business perspective this is a good niche and large scale. Aside the mission and the targeted niche, how do you expect/plan to diferentiate in your product offering?
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    We need to find a much better product market fit. This job board was our first pass at it, but we've learned lots and look forward to being far more engaging for our users in the future. There's been so much great feedback here alone, I can't wait to iterate.
• nsxwolf 9y ago
  "Richard Bronson" is an awesome name for this. It has real gravitas.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    lol Thank you
  • mcjiggerlog 9y ago
    Strangely similar to Richard Branson!
    • nsxwolf 9y ago
      And Charles Bronson!
• user5994461 9y ago
  How come 1 in 3 adults in the USA have a criminal record?
• flanbiscuit 9y ago
  quick FYI, Your og:image is broken because I just tried sharing your site on facebook and all I saw were logos from other companies. When I go directly to the image you set in your og:image meta tag I get an error response https://jobboardhq.blob.core.windows.net/assets/prod/2ttp/logo_social.png https://jobboardhq.blob.core.windows.net/assets/prod/2ttp/lo... here's a direct link to FB's open graph debugger with your site already loaded into it: https://developers.facebook.com/tools/debug/sharing/?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.70millionjobs.com%2F https://developers.facebook.com/tools/debug/sharing/?q=https...
  • LeifCarrotson 9y ago
    Another broken page is your "For Formerly Incarcerated->Gain Certification" page: https://www.70millionjobs.com/page/Certification https://www.70millionjobs.com/page/Certification I see nothing but some share buttons, the standard header and footer, and a blank white page. There's a Sumo login tab that slides out of the scroll bar if you mouseover near the top right corner. It's perhaps only caused by the Show HN DDOS/hug of death, but better to learn now than later that the Sumo Listbuilder popup takes at least 30-60 seconds to load. I only waited long enough to notice it because I had to disable UBlock and reloaded watching the Network tab of the dev tools.
• vogt 9y ago
  this is cool. you should get in touch with Pigeonly (YC W15).
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    I'm very familiar with those folks, thanks.
• adalyz 9y ago
  very interesting concept, all the best :-), hope it picks up, we need more love in our society
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    indeed we do! thanks
• dalbasal 9y ago
  Important (and inglorious) work. I wish you the best Richard, genuinely.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    thanks for the encouragement!
• 7cupsoftea 9y ago
  YES!!!! This is exactly the kind of innovation we need. Great work! Let us know if we can help. We are at very beginning stages of supporting people that are re-entering and getting folks lined up with jobs in a safe and supportive way is a big part of that. Again, hats off!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    And right back at you for your efforts!
• danschumann 9y ago
  I'd definitely consider hiring ex-cons, as long as they had some sort of 'come to Jesus' moment where they changed their life. I used to do a lot of bad stuff, just didn't get caught for it ( mostly doing drugs ). I wouldn't want to hire former me, but now that I've changed...
• forgotmyoldpw 9y ago
  Um, why are all of the photos on the site of African Americans? Yes, it's true that African Americans make up 40% of the prison population, but whites make up 39% and hispanics 19%. It seems the images you have chosen are an unfair stereotype.
  • LeifCarrotson 9y ago
    It's both better and worse than that. The photos of the job seekers are all African Americans, yes. But there is a photo that includes white men and even two white women: It's behind the "Employers" heading most of the way down the main page. Yikes.
  • jacalata 9y ago
    Some studies* have found that black men with a conviction experience significantly more hiring discrimination than white men, so the pool of "people with convictions struggling to get a job" is probably even more skewed towards black people. * random example form googling, but I've seen a few on the topic https://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2015/04/03/race-criminal-background-and-employment/ https://thesocietypages.org/socimages/2015/04/03/race-crimin...
• clairity 9y ago
  i'm also working on the jobs problem (not in your niche however) and really don't find the idea of another job board very compelling. can i ask why you went that route? in any case, best of luck! it's important work to be doing. as a society, we should do everything possible to help people who make mistakes and want to get back on the happy path. (as a side note, i think punishment is way out of whack. we need more carrot and less stick for low-level offenders, and more stick and less carrot for white-collar crimes that affect many more lives, though it seems like you got a fair amount of stick in your case.)
• oliv__ 9y ago
  I did a double take when I read the first 4 words: Richard Branson is in YC? Launching a job platform? Anyways, this is a great idea, I hope you succeed!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    What a big difference one letter can make. thanks for your thoughts.
    • stefek99 9y ago
      I read exactly the same. Mind playing tricks on us. And then... Wolf of Wolf Street. I'll make an insider joke and update my LinkedIn profile for "Stratton Oakmont Chief Compliance Officer"... Good energy, much love!
• geff82 9y ago
  The good thing about people with a criminal record: you know what they did! You will never know this of the people around you who got away not being caught. Do I know if my neighbour did not rob a bank 10 years ago? No. So working with ex-criminals can be an encounter with honesty.
  • rapind 9y ago
    Or they only got busted for a joyride but not the 12 B&Es and embezzlement. False signals.
  • justadeveloper2 9y ago
    Uh, no you don't. A lot of cases get plead down and the cops/DAs are lazy and often don't charge people with crimes they're not sure they can successfully prosecute. That's why there's so many "non-violent drug offenders" in prison all over. Yeah, most of those people were up to no good but got taken down for something less serious.
    • zerg2k 9y ago
      And a lot of people are forced to a plea after being overcharged and put through a very long crippling (financially and mentally) process while for the DA/cops is just another day to go to work
  • greenshackle2 9y ago
    Uh, you don't know what the ex-con hasn't been caught for either. Maybe they got away with murder 10 years ago, but where only caught for their petty theft 5 years later.
    • jmcdiesel 9y ago
      Which also undermines the usefulness of judging based on criminal record...
      • aeorgnoieang 9y ago
• cletus 9y ago
  I'm super-excited to see this. I really hope it works out. Thanks for doing it. Honestly I find how this country treats those with a felony record absolutely disgusting. The "Are you a convicted felon?" is a scarlet letter that never seems to disappear. While this might've originally been well-intentioned, IMHO it perpetuates criminality as I suspect what other choices do a lot of former felons have? There was (is?) a campaign in Massachussetts to retroactively pardon a felony conviction for Mark Wahlberg. Apparently this makes it difficult to, say, get liquor licenses and so forth. Personally I"m 100% against a commutation for the rich and famous. What we should be doing is freeing people from this stigma, particularly when the crime was a long time ago, especially nonviolent and likely not relevant to your job. FYI Mark Wahlberg's felony conviction was violent and pretty egregious actually as it was IIRC a racially-motivated attack on a Vietnamese man.
  • HillaryBriss 9y ago
    yeah, Wahlberg's crime is an interesting case -- the kind of violent crime most people think merits a severe punishment. and yet, he's a wealthy movie star today. American justice, folks. oddly enough, it happened in Massachusetts of all places, a state i expect to take this sort of hateful crime more seriously. maybe it would nowadays. that particular violent attack happened a while back. regarding licensing: the rumor i heard (for what it's worth) was that Wahlberg recently wanted to become certified as an actual officer on a local auxiliary or reserve police force for some new show he was planning. but, as a convicted felon, he is not eligible.
    • seanmcdirmid 9y ago
      Massachusetts...has always had a high incidence of racism. See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_busing_desegregation https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boston_busing_desegregation.
    • pchristensen 9y ago
      Boston. Ah Boston. For an entertaining account of some of Boston's history of racial conflict, I recommend the 2-part Dollop podcast about the bussing conflict: http://thedollop.libsyn.com/228-boston-busing-1974 http://thedollop.libsyn.com/228-boston-busing-1974 http://thedollop.libsyn.com/229-boston-busing-1975 http://thedollop.libsyn.com/229-boston-busing-1975 It sounds more like a bad disaster movie than recent American history.
• triangleman 9y ago
  In a past job I was responsible for hiring a few warehouse workers, and in one case I was actually relieved to find that the applicant was on probation for a drug charge, and was required to submit to weekly urine tests. Basically the state was paying to guarantee that this worker was staying clean, and so I was pretty confident about hiring him. I wonder if other employers would be interested in that kind of info as well.
  • pm90 9y ago
    Great point. I think the problem is that employers often use boilerplate conditions, and requirements are more stringent than the job would require.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Very interesting take on this
    • killjoywashere 9y ago
      Urinalysis as a service has got to be a thing already. Probably a partnership deal. Maybe LabCorp or Quest. Just stay away from Theranos :) If not, we could probably russle you up a chemist if you're willing to front the immunoassays and mass spectrometer. Or microfluidics. Then Theranos might be interested...
  • splintercell 9y ago
    Considering the number of friends who repeatedly and confidently pass state mandated drug tests, I would not trust that at all.
• w8rbt 9y ago
  State and federal governments do not get as much tax revenue either because these people are not earning at their full potential. So basically, it hurts everyone involved as well as society as a whole.
  • jjnoakes 9y ago
    Is that true? I don't know much about macroeconomics but it seems to me that even though these folks aren't earning at their full potential, the jobs are being done by someone. In other words, if these folks were earning more, someone else wouldn't be doing that job, so the overall earning that the set number of jobs would support wouldn't change one way or the other from the tax revenue point of view. (Not advocating for or against these folks being able to work at their full potential, just trying to look at the tax revenue argument objectively).
    • aero142 9y ago
      This is fixed pie thinking and it's not a good way to look at the economy and jobs. If this large block of people were earning more, they would be spending more. That means more restaurant jobs, home builders, baby sitters, etc. It's not a perfect one to one that jobs will increase with spending, but it's closer to that than the fixed number of jobs view you are putting out.
      • jjnoakes 9y ago
        > If this large block of people were earning more, they would be spending more Nothing I said disputed that.
    • xenadu02 9y ago
      Economics isn't a zero-sum game. People with better jobs spend more money to buy more products, including a lot of the products startups would very much like to sell. An ex-con working minimum wage isn't ordering Muchery, using Instacart, or taking Lyft rides. An ex-con working in frontend development very well might use those services. This generates economic activity across the entire chain, enriching everyone along the way. All of these people end up paying more taxes. Collectively the increase in activity can cause retailers, suppliers, and manufacturers to hire to keep up with demand further feeding the cycle. IIRC the research shows ex-cons are far less likely to re-offend in the future if they land a good job. How many kids looking forward to $130k/yr jobs would choose to join a gang instead? There's also the deadweight loss of criminal prosecution and jailing offenders. It generates a few legal and prison guard jobs but most of the taxes spent in the criminal justice system don't contribute constructively to society the same way building new bridges, subway systems, or funding science research does.
• justin66 9y ago
  This presents an interesting dilemma here for an ex-con. Most people can eventually get their records expunged after they're out for a while, at which point we as a society demand that they start responding "no" to the questions about having a criminal record during the interview process. It's dishonest but it's how the legal system works. If you're an ex-con who will eventually get his record expunged, is there any risk to participating in a job board like this? I'm guessing it is pretty small, and the advantages presented by the site will be worth it. Still, it's ironic that eventually users will probably be in a position (after expungement) where it is not in their interest to use the site anymore. I wonder if, when this site is successful, it will eventually want to team up with a more conventional job site to move some of those users over. Just a thought.
  • xenadu02 9y ago
    Remember that many states do not allow expunging records no matter how old (eg: Texas). For some people a conviction will follow them literally for the rest of their lives.
    • justin66 9y ago
      If I remember correctly Texas has at least one thing that can be done, an ex-con can petition the court to seal their records, which is similar in effect. (a pre-employment background screening place cannot report expunged or sealed records) I don't really know what the politics are like in Texas but I suspect getting that done isn't easy...
      • ams6110 9y ago
        Like a lot of legal matters, it's probably more dependent on whether you can afford to have it done.
  • tajen 9y ago
    ...or team up with rehabilitation organizations. Unfortunately there's no shortage of ex-prisonners in USA: About one third of the people in age of working.
• dodgycrooks 9y ago
  Can you filter candididates by the type of crime they did? I'd be fine with hiring people previously incarcerated for drugs offenses and other minor crimes. However, there's no way I'm hiring any rapists or pedophiles, or other such scum.
• gressquel 9y ago
  There are pictures african-american people on frontpage, about and guiding principles. People MAY be offended. Just a suggestion.
  • naturalgradient 9y ago
    What do you mean? The reality is that African-American people are incarcerated and convincted at very high rates, in great part thanks to policies that very specifically designed to target them (re: war on drugs).
    • hwoolery 9y ago
      I don't think he's arguing the disparity of the rate, but rather the implied generalization that former-convict = African-American. Look at the statistics posted above, that is not true. I agree, it needs redesign.
  • deleted 9y ago
    [deleted]
• whataretensors 9y ago
  Love it. Doing good and making money at the same time. What a great idea.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    I'm hopin'
    • stefek99 9y ago
      I like that you've used phrase "double bottom line" https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triple_bottom_line https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Triple_bottom_line Yes... Helping people, communities, over the generations.
• TallGuyShort 9y ago
  >> We expect additional revenue to come from municipalities, who spend tens of billions of dollars annually, when someone is rearrested. I'm curious - while I agree that it also benefits the municipalities to help former criminals reintegrate into productive society, through what channel do you see expect this revenue to come? I know some tax breaks exist for hiring ex-cons, but dishing out funds to a service like this would be entirely new, right?
• sdflsdjkl 9y ago
  Why are most of the photos of black people?
• rayjay217 9y ago
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• artur_makly 9y ago
  for branding, i would consider not using a fixed # in the name - as that will fluctuate. instead consider the spirit of the idea : perhaps "SecondChances.io" or better.. keep up the good work!
• Co_Reentry 9y ago
  Richard, Thanks for your effort in the reentry space! The struggle for returning citizens is real and constant and I love seeing things like this on HN. At one point I worked for a company apploi.com that had a similar business model but targeting a different demographic. I would love to share some things I learned from that experience. I also started a similar venture corestaffing.us that is hyper-focused on the Baltimore/Washington area. Let me know if you are interested in chatting!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    I am indeed. I'm at Richard@70MillionJobs.com
• sghiassy 9y ago
  Love the idea. Good luck!
• KGIII 9y ago
  Are you sure those jobs all hire felons? I browsed my State and saw jobs for physicians, pharmacists, and even a school psychiatrist.
  • Shivetya 9y ago
    was going to comment on this but will add on to yours. many states prohibit felons and even some non felons but with criminal records from certain fields that require occupational licensing. do you have methods in place or planning to filter jobs with such restrictions as not all states adhere to the same rules. great idea btw
• ghostbrainalpha 9y ago
  This is a beautiful project. Have you met the guys behind https://pigeon.ly/ https://pigeon.ly/? Are there any other problem areas related to the criminal justice system that you are not addressing, that you think a startup could help with?
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Yes, I know them well
• yequalsx 9y ago
  I think this is an important endeavor. In the U.S. we tend to be too much focused on punishment and retribution. No one benefits by preventing ex convicts from an attempt at a normal life. I hope you succeed and wish you well. I do think you ought to remove the phrase, "...but despite having paid everyone back..." That phrasing comes off to me as a bit of a justification for what you did and seems to indicate a feeling that you should not have been sentenced. I don't know if this is your intent or if indeed such a belief is justified. It may be off putting to some.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    I think you're right, and it's probably my last ditch attempt to defend myself. I need to omit that and move on. thanks Edit: removed that bit as well as "I went on to build a large financial services firm". Thanks for pointing this out.
• newsreader 9y ago
  Former career criminal here. Spent 19 years of my adult life in a combination of jail and prison. Longest stint was for 14 consecutive years. Been working in IT for the last 17 years, mostly as a developer. Had a very hard time getting my foot in the door; was denied employment more than once because of my record. Not sure that my current employer is even aware that I have a record, and to be honest I have no plans to reveal that part of my life. Also, knowing that my criminal activities would have life-long consequences was never a deterrent. One thing I know for sure: I’m not what I used to be. Today I live a peaceful and productive life with my wife, enjoy the company of family and friends, and try to stay up-to-date with technology. I think that what you are doing is a good thing an applaud you for it.
  • chris_wot 9y ago
    I'm sorry to hear of the issues you had getting employment. Must have been awful getting a job, hell when I left my last company with few references it was hard enough... I can only imagine how tough it must have been getting out of jail!
    • newsreader 9y ago
      It was very tough getting my first job. I been with my current employer for more than 10 years, and will probably retire from here. Many people don't believe that people change. I know for sure that people change -- unfortunately not always for the better.
      • Clubber 9y ago
        From what I understand, it has a lot to do with age. People just outgrow being wild. The prison system is full of 60 year olds who committed crimes in their teens and 20s who are no longer a threat, yet they remain. I'd say once a man hits 40 or so, they have better shit to do with their lives.
      • RonanTheGrey 9y ago
        Would you say that people who have been through what you have, generally change for the better? Or for worse? I think sites like 70MillionJobs are dedicated to the proposition that they change for the better. Do you agree? I firmly believe people change. Sorry, I know they do. And regardless of the nature of the change, it is fair to say that 10 years on, most people are not who they were before. Beyond about that mark, any prison sentence is nothing more than vengeance.
• jitix 9y ago
  Awesome idea! And a noble cause. But one word of advice - since this is a niche market you guys should focus on natural growth and profitability instead of getting too much VC money to fuel explosive growth.
  • adventist 9y ago
    I don't understand how 30% of Americans is a niche market? Can you elaborate some more?
    • wutbrodo 9y ago
      Because this 30% can't hire themselves, and they need companies to participate. This is a two-sided market, and "Companies willing to go out of their way to hire more felons" _is_ something of a niche market (unfortunately, given that the status quo is probably significant underhiring of people with records, to everyone's detriment).
    • jitix 9y ago
      Its niche because the idea can be easily replicated by the incumbents in the industry. And it will be hard to scale at a global scale because the perception about ex-cons varies a lot in different countries. As such the profits wont be able to keep up with VCs expectations if they invest 100s of millions of dollars. OP has a great first mover advantage and knowledge of the market, and they can capitalize that but the idea isn't worth billions.
• ahallock 9y ago
  It may be simplistic, but I believe if you've done the time, you should not have a criminal record hanging over your head when trying to find employment. For a third or fourth time offender, I may give pause, though.
• markhall 9y ago
  Richard, amazing idea and appreciate the candor from your personal experience. HN is a great community to spread the word of your launch, so thanks. Let me know how I can help
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    thanks, Mark. We need all the help we can get. What are you good at?
• coetry 9y ago
  The work that you are doing warms my heart and I wish you the best of growth and prosperity.
• glitcher 9y ago
  Testing out the Job Search functionality, there seems to be some room for improvement for returning more relevant results first. Doing a quick test against a keyword search for "developer", I would much rather see all results with developer in the job title first. Instead seeing a lot of top results that are not relevant, some which I can't find a form of the word "develop" anywhere in the full job description, much less the job title. Great concept and great start!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Yeah, the job search functionality needs lots of work. Like pretty much all job boards, we engage in scraping of other sites (along with our own jobs). While we try to filter based on geography, job type and "second-chance friendly," we get results that don't conform. Like you, I see all that needs improvement, and promise to make it much better. Please make sure to check in periodically and share what we can be doing better.
• losteverything 9y ago
  Is anyone elses reaction "What will they think of next?" Anyone also surprised at the scope of positive and admission-comments? Anyway, best of luck!!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    thank you. And yeah, the number and intelligence of the comments has been incredibly gratifying. it does my heart real good.
• wolco 9y ago
  I can see this concept being a huge success because it is solving a real problem. The difficult lift is the employer buyin.
• Danihan 9y ago
  >Attitudes are changing quickly Are they now? Tell me, which political party is planning on decriminalizing drug offenses?
  • jstanley 9y ago
    Just because political parties haven't kept up doesn't mean attitudes aren't changing quickly. In fact, if attitudes are changing fast enough, you'd expect political parties to be notably behind the curve.
    • Danihan 9y ago
      Only about 10% of people support legalizing harder drugs. They will remain illegal, and people will continue getting felonies. So... I don't believe that "these attitudes are changing quickly." http://big.assets.huffingtonpost.com/druglegalization2.png http://big.assets.huffingtonpost.com/druglegalization2.png
      • raarts 9y ago
        Man, just admit your comment was snarky and be done with it!
        • Danihan 9y ago
          It's not snarky, it's just reality. These felonies in question are either from violent crimes, which will always be illegal and a stain on someone's record, or from possessing hard drugs / selling drugs / or committing crimes associated with the black market due to the war on drugs. Obviously, from what I posted, the harder drugs will likely always be illegal and most people continue to support that. We aren't "making progress" when 90% of people surveyed want to physically put me in a cage for years for having a few hits of LSD in my pocket, or for selling steroids to gym buddies.
          • RonanTheGrey 9y ago
• felon123 9y ago
  How bout a separate site for those falsely accused of heinous crimes without any evidence(like Brian banks)
• deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
• mathattack 9y ago
  I went on to build a large financial services firm, but despite having paid everyone back, I ended up with a 2 year Federal prison sentence. Ummm.... This sounds like a huge rationalization. "I'm sorry for breaking in and robbing your house. Despite giving the money back, I ended up going to jail."
  • altstar 9y ago
    Read the next sentence: I was guilty.
• felon123 9y ago
  How bout a separate site for individuals who are falsely accused of heinous crimes(murder, rape) without evidence?
• will_brown 9y ago
  Just because I believe the number of reported violent crimes suggests our prison population is underpopulated, doesn't mean I don't also believe the system may currently be overpopulated with the wrong sorts. That's why I used numbers for sex crimes only, but more broadly we have ~2.2M inmates and 1.2M reported violent crimes per year, throwing out all non violent offenders it would still be hard to conclude our prisons are overfilled unless All cases had a max sentence of 1 year.
  • Mz 9y ago
    From your original comment: In fact, despite the ideas of US prison overcrowding and for profit drive conviction rates...I'd argue the opposite, that it's very likely the employer has already hired individuals who have committed various "crimes" and could but simply don't have records. So, basically, you think everyone is violent criminal scum, and are happy to only discriminate against the ones who have a record as violent criminal scum. Your argument is broken no matter how I try to view it. See also: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14913259 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14913259
    • will_brown 9y ago
      Based on anything I stated how do you conclude I "think all criminals are violent scum"? I'm an attorney, have defended people accused of crimes, and I too have a criminal record, so please check your bias. What I wrote is about a hypocritical practice that hiring managers engage in (rejection out right) when the reality is other employees they have hired and even themselves have engaged in the same acts, they just don't have a record as a result. Further, I suggest given the opportunity it might be better to say "hey, I have a criminal record for possession of marijuana, if you haven't personally experimented, you probably know someone who has or even voted for a President who has, Unfortunately I have a record as a result and I feel I have to acknowledge it as a courtesy to you" that might be more powerful than the original suggestion of "it shouldn't have happened...". But maybe I'm way off and such a suggestion some how projects an opinion I believe all criminals as scum, but I assure you I don't have such a low view of myself.
• malandrew 9y ago
  With the immigration crackdowns by the Trump administration, we've seen more and more stories about labor shortages in agricultural jobs often performed by immigrants. The problem has reached the point where wages have been increasing. Do those with criminal records consider these jobs? Why or why not? I would imagine that agricultural jobs would be low-risk for those types of employers since those with criminal records are unlikely to be interacting with customers or exposed to high value inventory. Both of which are characteristics of a job that would give employers pause about hiring someone with a criminal record.
  • vacri 9y ago
    Unskilled agricultural work is the lowest-of-the-low. In Georgia they cracked down on using illegal immigrants, and it cost them their peach harvest, because locals won't do that kind of hard-to-reach (rural), low-paying, short-term/seasonal work. A similar thing is happening here in my home state in Australia. The government introduced a new tax on the backpackers that traditionally filled out the fruit-picking workforce. The fruit-pickers cried foul about how the government was now strangling them... but this story has a twist: the fruit-pickers have been treating the backpackers like shit, withholding pay, for enough years for word to get around that it was no longer worth doing. In short, local residents don't want to do short-term seasonal work under poor working conditions - unskilled agricultural jobs really suck. Not to mention that you're not going to draw city-dwellers out to the farm if they're poor enough to be attracted to that kind of work - who is going to give up their home for short-term work? Only those folks who don't have any roots put down; that is, people who are already travellers of some kind. Longer-term agricultural work can attract people more easily, since they'll have an ongoing income and can put roots down.
• distortednet 9y ago
  First time creating an account on HN. Wanted to to say what you're doing is important. I will be sure word gets around about this in the appropriate circles where it would be useful.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Thanks for joining us here
• jaggajasoos33 9y ago
  I really commend people who have made this website. Would love to see them succeed. This is perhaps the first step for Murican society to tell our government that needless vilification of minor criminals is not okay.
• Snarketing 9y ago
  Silicon Valley CMO with a record here - would love to offer pro bono marketing help if needed.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Please get in touch: richard@70millionjobs.com
• deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
• tatotato 9y ago
  Goodness! This seems like an amazing opportunity - I have charges that will never go away under New Zealand's Clean Slate Act for buying from Silk Road when I was 17 years of age. This is truly progressive.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    thanks
• ileze 9y ago
  Sadly, 'round these parts you'll get more tolerance for your status as a felon, then for that of having religious beliefs.
  • purple-again 9y ago
    Even the most zealous of us atheists appreciates the good that religion can do in someone's life. This is a perfect example of a situation where he is unlikely to receive any flak for his beliefs.
  • dang 9y ago
    Please don't post like this to HN. It makes the threads so much worse, regardless of how right your point is. We detached this subthread from https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14914297 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=14914297 and marked it off-topic.
  • curun1r 9y ago
    Speaking personally and for many of the atheists that I know, none of us will begrudge someone finding something, religion or otherwise, that gives them comfort and strengthens them through the hardships of life. In fact I'm often jealous that that kind of answer doesn't work for me the way it does for others. My spiritual journey has been much more challenging. We will, however, begrudge them proselytizing their religion, claiming or implying a greater claim to morality based on their religious beliefs or advocating public policy based on the tenets of their faith.
• mikekij 9y ago
  Hey Richard, I'm really glad to see you working on this. A family member of mine made some mistakes, and ended up spending time in prison. It's been really painful to watch him struggle to get a job, even though he's paid his debts and is a genuinely good person. I have tremendous sympathy for people in this position. If any of your members are experts at embedded systems / firmware / cryptography, send them my way!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    ok, I will. Thx
• Unbeliever69 9y ago
  Bravo. The REAL problem, however, is the quality of jobs available to felons. If this board is filled with nothing more than labor and call-center jobs then, you've only solved part of the problem. The true goal is to connect felons with sympathetic employers in ALL manner of jobs. There is nothing like a felony to destroy a person's sense of self-worth and the system is completely rigged against a felon. This is bigger than a technological problem. It is a problem of humanity and forgiveness.
  • alexashka 9y ago
    I don't know that it has anything to do with humanity or forgiveness. When I want to get myself a puppy - I'd like one that is well behaved, not a puppy that's been returned for behavioural problems. It's not because I'm less human or hold a grudge against a puppy that happens to bite people or whatever the case may be. The idea of sympathetic employers is a naive way of looking at life. It'd make my day better if you paypaled me a thousand dollars right now. I know you have the means to do it - let's exercise that sympathy for strangers you'd like others to exhibit for some strange reason :)
• rweba 9y ago
  I just randomly came across this very relevant TED talk given by a prison inmate yesterday: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F89eycANUrQ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F89eycANUrQ I definitely feel that American prison policy leans way too far on the side of moral judgement and retribution than rehabilitation. In my personal opinion, anyone who has served their term has already paid for their mistakes and we, as a society, should be more concerned with helping them get back on their feet than with further punishing them for their mistakes. I also think the practice of denying former felons the right to vote is completely ridiculous. So if you commit a felony at 18, you can't vote even when you're a 100? What kind of sense does that make?
  • losteverything 9y ago
    <So if you commit a felony at 18, you can't vote even when you're a 100? I can tell you with 100% certainty that there are felons that vote. I believe the system in our county is not perfect and thus mails out a voter registration to a convicted murderer that served his time and is now free.
    • mobilefriendly 9y ago
      It also depends on the state.
      • sathackr 9y ago
        Florida has a process for felons convicted of certain crimes to have their civil rights restored -- right to vote, own a gun, etc...
  • mobilefriendly 9y ago
    The idea is that a felony is so egregious that you permanently lose some of the rights of civil society. Another right taken away forever is the right to own a firearm. The problem is that everything is a felony now.
  • sathackr 9y ago
    I think much of the American sentiment is prejudicial -- if you broke the law once, you can't be trusted not to do it again. We love to grab our pitchforks and burn an 'evil-doing criminal' at the stake. It doesn't matter that they 'paid for what they did' -- they might do it again, so why ever let them see the light of the day? Inhumane? Yea sure, we can be nice to 'them' if you want, just NIMBY! I have CHILDREN for heavens sake! Just look at the comments on any news article of anyone being arrested. As far as the general public is concerned, they're already guilty and are lucky we even let them keep breathing. Rarely will you read an article about the charges being dropped later, or the person acquitted. Nobody cares at that point.
• Scirra_Tom 9y ago
  1/3 adults with a criminal record in a developed country seems absolutely insane to me. Edit: Well I need to get off my horse because it seems to be similar here in the UK as well: https://www.theguardian.com/money/2002/apr/14/workandcareers.observercashsection https://www.theguardian.com/money/2002/apr/14/workandcareers...
  • the_common_man 9y ago
    I was surprised by this statistic as well. If guess the prisons are very large...
• kharms 9y ago
  >I felt a new, for-profit, tech-based approach was necessary, so I launched 70MillionJobs. I understand why you preferred to make more money, but what made it necessary?
• kinnth 9y ago
  I don't come from the US but I also gained a record and it changed how I viewed life and how I was viewed for opportunities. Punishment is the worst way for people to move on. This is a great idea, well done.
• john255 9y ago
  who cares
• bebopmoptop 9y ago
  Wow, this is great! I was convicted of a crime in my late teens and spent a few years in the federal system because of my conviction. It was an interesting process attempting to gain employment. It warms to my heart to see jobs that are more open to people with previous convictions - they're some of the most loyal and hardworking people I've encountered. Keep up the great work!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    I will keep up the work--I hope it approaches great. thanks
• mythrwy 9y ago
  What is the incentive for employers to use this site? "Doing the right thing and second chances" doesn't count in this case because it's rare when talking business and isn't dependable. One possible incentive, (and this is a bit concerning), is employers looking for people who can be paid less and abused more because they don't have many options.
• renegadesensei 9y ago
  This is a fantastic effort. It is absolutely crucial that we do a better job of helping those who have served their time have a chance to become productive members of society.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Thank you
• Nemant 9y ago
  Hi Richard, What's your plan when the number of people with criminal records reaches 80 million, 90 million, etc? Have you already acquired the other domain names?
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Actually, I think the numbers will go down rather than up (our present administration notwithstanding). About the only thing that Republicans and Democrats can agree on is that the criminal justice system is seriously broken. Longer sentences and more jails hasn't worked. The war on drugs? We lost that long ago. So many lives wasted on mandatory minimum sentences (eliminating all judicial discretion), drug arrests (many for a drug that's being widely decriminalized). I have experienced positive changes in the 15 years since I was released. The cultural zeitgeist is evolving rapidly, for the better. There's reason to be optimistic.
• ztratar 9y ago
  Shot you guys an email, but would love to offer your users free months on Boost (https://getboost.io https://getboost.io). We're the only on-demand career coach that's affordable for all.
• Powerofmene 9y ago
  Richard, I think this is a terrific idea and can see the need. Do you foresee any difficulties obtaining VC? Just a bit curious given the in depth background checks they complete on founders. I hope that you get the funding that you may need for growth because I think this meets a tremendous need. Kudos to you for making the changes you have made and then using that to help others.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Thanks for your support. This space seems to resonate w/the VC community, all things being equal. Ultimately, it falls upon me and my team to execute and make it a business that's worthy of investment. Good intentions will not drive their involvement, nor should it. The rubber meets the road if we can provide a viable, sustainable HR solution. If we can't/don't, then we don't deserve investment nor to remain in business. But my VC dealings thus far have been very positive, starting with YC
    • Powerofmene 9y ago
      I am glad to hear that VCs are supportive and are showing that they can do what you are trying to do, give someone a second chance. Again, kudos. I hope your venture is a huge success.
• Iv 9y ago
  > our business model is based upon employers paying to advertise their jobs. The only question I have is: why would they? I can see the reason why the job seekers would subscribe to your website but I don't see why employers would prefer it to other alternatives. Actually I can see one: to be able to identify which candidates have a criminal record and eliminate them from their pool. Registering there as an employer can be an act of good will and generosity but that seems a bit awkward to make them pay for it, no? BTW, you have to have a very solid security from the beginning. A leak of your database would not only threaten your business but negate most of the good you did.
  • ascorbic 9y ago
    Because it expands the pool of applicants. It's a way of getting access to people who otherwise might not apply (and who are probably willing to work for less).
• deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
• mattbgates 9y ago
  Hey, thanks for sharing this. I actually just wrote an article (not yet published) for an organization that helps inmates learn how to code while in prison so they can have some life skills for when they are done serving their time and get out in the real world. I'm not talking about murderers or pedophiles or people who just probably don't belong in society at all, but when it comes to people with lesser crimes -- people who got greedy, people who were stupid and stole something, or even were involved with drugs (I'm an advocate for decriminalization), people who can be given a second chance and not resort to a life of returning to old habits. The organization's URL is: https://thelastmile.org/ https://thelastmile.org/ Another URL I came across: http://jobsthathirefelons.org/ http://jobsthathirefelons.org/ Anyways, hope you don't mind, but I've added your URL to my article as well. I'd rather see productive ex-cons/former felons contribute to our society and not be relegated to a position at a minimum wage job for the rest of their lives, despite having massive amounts of skills and talents that can be used elsewhere.
  • Blackthorn 9y ago
    I teach college classes for a degree-granting program on occasion and have taught murderers. They are in prison doing their time, and some will eventually be paroled. They can be given a second chance as well.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    I don't mind at all, and I'm very familiar w/The Last Mile, and consider it good company to be in.
• anon4728 9y ago
  Has anyone ever tried or heard of volunteering/mentoring prisoners to learn skills like coding or electronics?
• blahman2 9y ago
  I gotta say, as fucking annoying as I find most of you people on other topics, I am so thrilled to see your support for a cause such as this one. You almost killed the cynic in me :) Go hackers!
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    And as someone new to both HN and the tech culture in general, I'm stunned by both the intelligence of the comments offered and the soul behind them. Doing this work has definitely done my heart good.
• Fjolsvith 9y ago
  Richard, a suggestion: Have a way for parole/probation officers to search for jobs nearby for their charges. My PO was actually a helpful guy, as he figured if I was working, I was more likely to stay out of trouble. Just have some way for them to engage and provide assistance to new parolees.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Another great suggestion. We have begun working with parole/probation offices who frequently are incredibly passionate professionals committed to making a difference. At some point we'll offer a white label platform for them to track employment opportunities, employers, etc. Many still operate off of an excel spread sheet.
• sigzero 9y ago
  That's nothing short of awesome.
• Fjolsvith 9y ago
  Richard, another thought I had: There is a tax break for businesses that hire a new parolee. Something like $4-5k tax credit for the first year of employment. Would be good to find out about that and let employers know - help encourage them to hire criminals.
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    Yeah, agreed, they're called WOTC's (Work Opportunity Tax Credits) and they are significant tax benefits. Some municipalities will also kick in money towards initial salaries, so there's compelling reasons to hire this population.
• riffraff 9y ago
  this is great stuff, I wish you success. One minor suggestion: review the assets on your website, the second background image[0] for example is 12 megabytes, you can probably compress it to much smaller size. [0] https://jobboardhq.blob.core.windows.net/assets/prod/2ttp/shutterstock_129614768.jpg https://jobboardhq.blob.core.windows.net/assets/prod/2ttp/sh...
  • RBBronson123 9y ago
    thanks for the suggestion
• RobertoG 9y ago
  I'm impressed by the "1 in 3 adults" thing. I should check the numbers for my country. Am I wrong or all that people can't vote?
• fivestarredflag 9y ago
  really love this idea. I know a lot of people with stupid felonies like DUIs and can't get employment! keep up the good work!
• fivestarredflag 9y ago
  really love this idea. I know a lot of people with stupid felonies like DUIs and can't get employment! keep up the good work!
• conanbatt 9y ago
  This is a great idea and I hope it does well. From an economic standpoint, why IS it a problem? The lack of sense of safety could come with a discount that eventually evens out. I.E. a felon gets an offer with 30% discount, and after a year or so that he proves as normal as any other get his wages back. Not feasible with minimum wage jobs, and one could think this is really unfair, but its better than a straight no.
• beegeezuz 9y ago
  Who in their right mind would hire a criminal? Intellectually lowered need second chances, smart people think before they act in the first place. With 7 billion of people overcrowding this planet, we really need to start weeding the garbage out.
  • beefield 9y ago
    Probably the same ones that hire racists and people with prejudices ? https://www.livescience.com/18132-intelligence-social-conservatism-racism.html https://www.livescience.com/18132-intelligence-social-conser...
• Bakary 9y ago
  One in three adults have a criminal record in the US? Wow.
• hgoldstein 9y ago
  A terrific long overdue idea
• hgoldstein 9y ago
  Terrific idea. Long overdue