Posted on 11/04/2013 8:19:16 AM PST by YourAdHere
Individuals seeking employment with the Target Corporation will soon notice a change in the company’s job applications.
The Minneapolis-based company recently announced that they will no longer question applicants about their criminal history. The company said it expects to remove the question from applications nationwide in the coming year.
According to the National Employment Law Project, the decision was based on a new Minnesota law and the efforts of grassroots organizations that have been pressuring the company to change their standards.
“Target is finally doing the right thing by reforming its hiring policies so that qualified job applicants aren’t automatically screened out simply because they have an arrest or conviction from the past,” Christine Owens, executive director of the National Employment Law Project, said in a statement. “Other large retailers around the nation need to follow suit, because their hiring policies send a strong message about whether they are committed to the communities that support their business.”
Applications for public sector jobs in the state have been barred from asking applicants about their criminal history. In May, Governor Mark Dayton increased the reach of the law by requiring private companies to follow the rule as well.
According to the Minnesota Department of Human rights, employers will still have the authority and legal obligation to turn away criminals with certain records, including sexual offenses.
According to the National Employment Law Project, more than 10 states and 50 cities have all fallen in line with the “Ban the Box” movement, requiring that employers eliminate the box all applicnants are asked to check if they have served time in prison.
“I think this is an excellent choice and for the organization itself, this speaks volumes as to how they are considering the people they want to hire,” said Walter Lomax, project director for the Maryland Restorative Justice Initiative.
“It is challenging whether it’s someone returning from a long-term or short-term incarceration. A criminal record is a hold-back for folks who have found themselves involved with the justice system,” he added. “We’re not saying that at some point an employee shouldn’t learn something about their employee’s criminal background. What we are saying is that they need to at least be given an opportunity for an interview. Then they can explain the circumstances of their incarceration.”
Lomax has taken up many causes related to citizens returning to the populace from incarceration. In addition to efforts to allow ex-convicts to serve on trial juries, Lomax has dealt with many returning citizens and their difficulties finding employment.
“I had one case where a man filled out 10 applications and every one asked [whether he had] a criminal record. He wasn’t called back for a single one of them,” he said. “The reality is that he has to check that box because if he doesn’t and they find out, he will be fired. It will be assumed that he is untruthful. It definitely adds a level of anxiety.”
I thought Obama signed that into law. ??
(We know that Obama would have flunked)
Are you currently wanted by law enforcement for any criminal activity or as a suspect in any criminal activity?Are you presently an escaped convict?
Are you part of a terrorist organization, do you support ant terrorist organizations or have you committed any acts of terrorism?
Are you currently engaged in any criminal or terrorist activity?
Are you legally present in the United States and legally eligible to be employed?
Do you advocate the overthrow of the US Constitution?
Who is the rightfull owner of the I.D. documents and the social security number you are currently using?
I’d qualify that by saying that the ban should only apply to large employers (1000+ employees). A small business that hires a former convict by accident could end up going bust, if that hire turns out badly. Large businesses have a certain amount of redundancy built in.
Article: “ A criminal record is a hold-back for folks who have found themselves involved with the justice system,”
A criminal record is a hold-back for folks who have been caught doing bad things.
bump
Imagine Target hiring a child molesters for the children’s clothes section. That could end very badly.
Now I know where to NOT shop at Christmas. What makes these businesses think customers would be willing to hand over credit cards, debit cards, or checks to do business/make purchases? We may not be going to a cashless society as soon as people think.
From an Human Relations viewpoint, the difference is that the box forces the applicant to put the information down in black and white. If the background check does not corroborate the information provided in the box, then the human relations employee can deal with the situation from a position of power in the subsequent discussions / negotiations.
Are they removing criminals from the emplpoyee roster?
I haven’t shopped there in years, and I don’t think I’d feel safe shopping there now.
I hope you get convicted by the gestapo of some crime against progressivism and become permanently unemployable.
Don’t ask a bunch of potential employees in a retail store about their criminal past.
What could go wrong??
Back in the 70s, it was not only common to ask about “Arrest History” but other unnecessary and now-illegal things. A place I worked used a job application that asked: “Do you drink alcohol, and if so provide details”. Most people just wrote something like “Socially” or “a beer or two on the weekend”.
A few wrote things like “Budweiser” or “a glass of wine with dinner”.
But the funniest was a good looking gal who applied for a job who wrote a short paragraph similar to: “Usually just a few glasses of wine with friends, , but I prefer tequila shots when I’m on business trips with my boss and feeling especially lonely”.
Well played, but she didn’t get the job.
Right on, kindred spirit.
Let us know when you’re out of rehab. Maybe you can get a job at Goodwill.....
hope you get convicted by the gestapo of some crime against progressivism and become permanently unemployable....85% of all losses recorded by crime statistics in the retail section come from employees. So you want to pay for all these miscreants? I don’t understand your post(?). Please elucidate.
Necrophilic pedophiles working to the toy section of Target or playing Santa Claus there?
The workforce in retail is 85% female. You do have an obligation to look after the safety of your employees. By, for example, not hiring a paroled rapist.
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