Criminal Conviction Often a Lifelong Job-Killer

How difficult is it for someone with a criminal record to find a good paying, seemingly permanent job? I imagine it depends on the type of crime committed. Sadly, this sourced article from the Guardian didn’t distinguish crimes committed, so some objectivity is required.

In Florida, hundreds of thousands of workers with criminal records end up accepting jobs at temporary staffing agencies, often with lower wages and no benefits. Former prisoners describe feeling “disposable”, being stuck in temporary jobs with no advancement, and unable to obtain direct employment. Temp work has become the default entry point for such people according to Beyond the Bars, a non-profit organization advocating for workers with criminal records.

This is where a definition of crimes committed would have been appreciated. I can understand a convicted murderer or rapist not being able to find a good job because of employer concern for the safety of fellow employees. On the other hand, employers shouldn’t fear someone who did time for a small marijuana bust when they had no previous criminal record.

Nearly 6.2 million people in Florida - 36% of the state’s population – have a criminal record. Maybe I’m out of the loop on society, but that seems to be an extremely high number. How does one-third of the population manage to have a criminal record? It’s mind boggling.

Direct employment is often complicated by the demands of state or county supervision, curfews, mandatory parole, and/or court appointments. As a result, more than 70% of individuals coming home from prison in south Florida seek employment through a temp agency inside of three years. Temp agencies and labor pools are often the only employers willing to hire workers with criminal records.

Such agencies profit by charging employers a fee, and in return, assume worker’s compensation and other risks and liabilities. They may also charge steep placement fees that serve as barriers for temp workers being hired permanently. Some warehouses in Florida are entirely staffed by temp workers.

Temp construction workers earn about $6.47 less per hour than direct employees, equivalent to over $13k of lost income per year. One example is a gentleman who claims that after release, he was placed as a temp on a construction site working for the same company for nine years. He did the same work as everyone else but was never offered me a permanent position. No benefits, no security. Let’s hope he’s the exception.

According to a 2022 survey of temp workers by the National Employment Law Project, 24% of temp workers reported wage theft of some type by their employer. Forty-one percent reported that they personally covered their own healthcare costs – which I think all Americans should have to do, but that’s a story for another day. In addition, 71% of temp workers reported experiencing some form of retaliation for raising workplace issues with management.

With that said, if you know someone who could be a border-line criminal, please find a kind way of telling them that following through with any nefarious activity can be a life-long job killer with permanent financial difficulties.

Source used: the Guardian