In recent years, there has been a growing interest in removing barriers to employment for qualified individuals with a criminal record as seen by the proliferation of “Ban the Box” laws. Generally, these laws prohibit an employer from requiring a prospective employee to disclose a criminal conviction on a job application or before a conditional offer of employment is made. At least 18 states have enacted “fair chance” laws. Fair chance laws are also in effect in over 100 cities and counties. Fair chance policies also have the approval of the Equal Opportunity Commission.
Now the federal government is poised to become the next sector to officially ban the box. The federal Fair Chance Act (SB 2021/HB 3740) was introduced in Congress earlier this month with bipartisan support. If passed, the Fair Chance Act would prohibit all federal contractors and all federal agencies from requiring disclosure of the criminal history of a job applicant prior to receiving a conditional offer of employment. There is an exception to the pre-offer prohibition where the disclosure of a criminal history is required by law or the position involves access to classified or sensitive information.
“Ban the Box” laws do not preclude a criminal background check as part of the pre-employment process. Postponing the criminal background check until later in the hiring process allows employers to consider first the individual’s skills and qualifications. The legislation will allow past offenders that want to move on from past mistakes a chance to get their foot in the door.