Stephanie R. Thomas, hosts “The Proactive Employer Podcast“, which is a weekly broadcast dedicated to EEO compliance and employment litigation risk management.
Last week she reported on the myths about employing people with criminal histories.
Here’s a recap of the podcast:
Each year, more than 700,000 people are released from federal and state prisons, and another 9 million cycle through local jails. Federal agencies are funding reentry efforts in communities all around the country, and the Obama administration is working across agencies to coordinate and advance efforts through the Federal Reentry Council.
Part of the reentry process is finding employment.
In this installment of The Proactive Employer Podcast, Stephanie talks about what the Federal Reentry Council is doing to assist with employment efforts. She talks about three common myths regarding employment of individuals with criminal backgrounds and she also covers common questions regarding employee background screening.
THE MYTHS
MYTH #1 : People with criminal records are automatically barred from employment.
- FACT: An arrest or conviction record will NOT automatically bar individuals from employment.
- Get the Myth Buster fact sheet (PDF).
MYTH #2: Businesses and employers have no way to protect themselves from potential property and monetary losses should an individual they hire prove to be dishonest.
- FACT: Through the Federal Bonding Program (FBP), funded and administered by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), fidelity insurance bonds are available to indemnify employers for loss of money or property sustained through the dishonest acts of their employees (i.e., theft, forgery, larceny, and embezzlement).
- Get the Myth Buster fact sheet (PDF).
MYTH #3: The Federal Government’s hiring policies prohibit employment of people with criminal records.
- FACT: The Federal Government does not have a policy that precludes employment of people with criminal records from all positions.
- Get the Myth Buster fact sheet (PDF).
Need help in sorting out the facts from myths about employee background checks? Give us a call at 1-800-809-2419. We’d love to hear from you.
