Bloomberg Law: Seeking Jobs After Jail, Freed Prisoners Say Biden Aid Lacking
Jason Hernandez, who spent nearly 20 years in prison, cheered the Biden administration’s plans to make it easier for people like him to re-enter the workforce.
But Hernandez and other formerly incarcerated people, as well as criminal justice advocates, now worry the actual proposals may fall short of expectations for those who served long sentences.
They say the proposals fail to address the real-world challenges faced when seeking jobs, such as how to explain long time gaps on resumes. And human resources professionals say the administration must commit more resources and work with employers to properly implement the changes.
…
Criminal justice reformers said questions such as how to address work-history gaps are cause for concern and stressed that giving the regulations teeth and ensuring broad implementation should be a top priority to help convicted people get a fair chance to reintegrate.
“This is why how they are implementing is so important,” said Inimai Chettiar, the federal director of the Justice Action Network. “They’re actually starting to implement, given that the law was passed in 2019, so it’s a great first step. But it has to be implemented properly and broadly, meaning all people with criminal histories, no matter how long, aren’t locked out of federal employment opportunities.”