Recently, Madison’s Common Council joined the Dane and Milwaukee counties in a campaign entitled “Banning the Box,” otherwise known as eliminating the section on employment applications asking about criminal pasts. Across the country, 10 states and dozens of smaller governments have adopted this measure to increase the likelihood of previous felons to support themselves with a stable job. Wisconsin should be the 11th state to adopt such a measure statewide during the next legislative session. Bottom line: individuals who have previously committed a felony should not be further discriminated against when trying to find employment.
It’s important to note that the city would still do background checks after a conditional employment offer was made. This allows for relevant criminal histories to still become known, but also prevents the city from dismissing a qualified candidate based on a non-relevant criminal history. There are several consequences of conviction, including instances where federal law bars convicted felons from working. However, there are numerous positions administered by the city, county or state for which many prior convictions would be irrelevant. Having a prior DUI – or four in Wisconsin’s case – means that the city probably wouldn’t hire them for a bus driving position but does not mean an individual couldn’t be hired in a facilities management role or other role. “Banning the box” reduces the risk that qualified people are dismissed unnecessarily.
For the state legislature and the governor (whoever ends up winning), it should be a bipartisan issue. Republicans should be able to get behind the idea of getting more qualified people back into the workforce. This is a perfect example of reducing the barrier for folks who want to work. Conservative states like Nebraska and New Mexico have adopted this statewide, so this isn’t a bleeding heart liberal ideal.
For those bleeding heart liberals, there is also a lot to like. Wisconsin locks up the highest percentage of its black population in the nation, and this measure can help break the cycle of poverty that plagues many of our larger regions. By removing these questions from the initial application, applicants are encouraged to apply to a job that they previously feared was out of their reach. Some managers who receive a dozen applications might immediately toss those with a prior conviction just to slim down the pile. Under this law, these individuals would have a measure of protection against this discrimination. Additionally, if someone is offered a job and then, upon the conditional background check, is denied for a previous conviction, there is a clear element that can be appealed in court.
“We don’t have to condone what they did to get in trouble, but I, personally, want people who’ve served their debt to society to get back into the workforce,” Dane County Executive Joe Parisi said in a 2009 interview, after Dane County adopted the proposal. These sentiments were spot-on. If we, as a society, view prison as a way for individuals to repay society for their transgressions, we must provide ways to reintegrate these individuals once that debt has been repaid.
The primary argument against “banning the box” is the fear so eloquently stated in the comments section of Madison.com by WI_Expat, who states that a headline in the near future will read, “City Employee with Past Convictions Arrested for Brutal Rape an (sic) Murder While at Work.”
This fear, however, is absolutely absurd. For one thing, about 86 percent of incarcerated people are in prison for nonviolent crimes. Of those who are incarcerated for a violent crime, 92 percent are there for non-rape or non-murder reasons. This new law is not aimed at letting this incredibly small segment of the population get jobs that they can use to commit rape or murder again. It is instead an avenue for the 98 percent of prisoners who were not convicted of rape or murder to reintegrate with society.
In Dane County, we have both a city and a county willing to help able individuals find jobs, and it is time that the state follows suit.
Adam Johnson ([email protected]) is a graduate student at the La Follette School of Public Affairs.
