5 ms·

I beg to differ. Although I have no data or experience to suggest one way or another. I can see how you would want to first be judged on the merit of your skil

by atonse 9y ago

I beg to differ. Although I have no data or experience to suggest one way or another. I can see how you would want to first be judged on the merit of your skills and then an employer might be willing to make a judgement call in your case, after they have judged your value. As opposed to your resume being thrown out without even as much as a second thought if you are a convicted felon.

joshmn 9y ago
I have plenty of experience here, so I can comment. I've never had a problem finding a gig even though I'm a felon, but I don't work with BigCorp because that's not my scene (and it's probably harder to market myself as a felon to anyway): At the end of the initial phone call / screening, I tell them, transparently: "there's no way I can pass a background check by the way" It has always been well received, even to recruiters and head hunters.
- ichamo 9y ago
  I also have experience with this. I'd say the industry type and company size matter a great deal. Felons are legally barred from working at any FDIC insured company. So forget banking/finance. Also healthcare will also have stringent background checks. Giant corporations may have policies that immediately skip over you regardless. I'm not sure how I've made it really. Luck mostly. I'm ten years removed from my arrest and it still comes back to haunt me.
  - joshmn 9y ago
    The worst part for me has been finding a place to live. I've even offered to pay annually and up-front.
- hluska 9y ago
  This is the best advice that I've read here. I can only upvote you once, but I think it would be amazing if OP could read this.
- patricius 9y ago
  Danish person here. How does it work? Will the background check reveal what crime was committed, or just that you are a felon? I could imagine knowing the specific crime could influence the final decision on hiring or not, no?
  - ams6110 9y ago
    Arrests, prosecutions, and convictions are a matter of public record. So the specific offense and sentence will turn up in any criminal history background check, unless you are able to get your record sealed or expunged which I think only happens in cases where you were a minor offender and went through the juvenile system, or when a conviction is overturned on appeal or other extenuating circumstances that are fairly unusual.
BillinghamJ 9y ago
For my company, as with many, we need to know about this stuff up-front. If we make an agreement on the basis of not knowing, then we later find out, there is absolutely no way whatsoever we will _ever_ hire you. We are a finally regulated company though, so the requirements are perhaps a bit more strict. If you explain all of this ahead of time - much like this website does - then we can take it into account and there won't be any surprises. For a serious offence, it's probably still going to be a no. For anything fraud or white-collar related, it's going to be a no. But for less serious offences not related to our business, I think we'd be reasonably comfortable.

by atonse 9y ago

joshmn 9y ago

I have plenty of experience here, so I can comment. I've never had a problem finding a gig even though I'm a felon, but I don't work with BigCorp because that's not my scene (and it's probably harder to market myself as a felon to anyway): At the end of the initial phone call / screening, I tell them, transparently: "there's no way I can pass a background check by the way" It has always been well received, even to recruiters and head hunters.

ichamo 9y ago
I also have experience with this. I'd say the industry type and company size matter a great deal. Felons are legally barred from working at any FDIC insured company. So forget banking/finance. Also healthcare will also have stringent background checks. Giant corporations may have policies that immediately skip over you regardless. I'm not sure how I've made it really. Luck mostly. I'm ten years removed from my arrest and it still comes back to haunt me.
- joshmn 9y ago
  The worst part for me has been finding a place to live. I've even offered to pay annually and up-front.
hluska 9y ago
This is the best advice that I've read here. I can only upvote you once, but I think it would be amazing if OP could read this.
patricius 9y ago
Danish person here. How does it work? Will the background check reveal what crime was committed, or just that you are a felon? I could imagine knowing the specific crime could influence the final decision on hiring or not, no?
- ams6110 9y ago
  Arrests, prosecutions, and convictions are a matter of public record. So the specific offense and sentence will turn up in any criminal history background check, unless you are able to get your record sealed or expunged which I think only happens in cases where you were a minor offender and went through the juvenile system, or when a conviction is overturned on appeal or other extenuating circumstances that are fairly unusual.

BillinghamJ 9y ago

For my company, as with many, we need to know about this stuff up-front. If we make an agreement on the basis of not knowing, then we later find out, there is absolutely no way whatsoever we will _ever_ hire you. We are a finally regulated company though, so the requirements are perhaps a bit more strict. If you explain all of this ahead of time - much like this website does - then we can take it into account and there won't be any surprises. For a serious offence, it's probably still going to be a no. For anything fraud or white-collar related, it's going to be a no. But for less serious offences not related to our business, I think we'd be reasonably comfortable.