Companies Can Build Their Workforce By Hiring People Out of Prison
recidivism — repeated or habitual relapse, as into crime.
The day was April 18, 2017, and it was a cool, dry morning as I waited for a bus by San Francisco’s Ferry Building. The fog was hovering over the city from the Golden Gate to the Bay Bridge. Aside from 1 other person I previously knew, I was heading into a tough environment with a group of people I’ve never met. We lined up in a single file line onto the bus not knowing what to expect and how this experience might change us going forward. For that hour-plus ride up north, I was contemplating on how I was another Black man heading off to prison.
Solano State Prison is a medium-security facility located in Vacaville, CA, and about an hour northeast of San Francisco on the way to scenic Lake Tahoe. As we entered the long road into the facility, the moment started to feel more and more real. A little too real, and I was starting to get terrified. Mentally, I was hopeful of what I was to gain from this experience but this didn’t help to shake the feeling of pure fear that loomed over me. Despite that feeling, I was determined to push the overwhelming feeling of fear aside and to begin this journey with an open mind.
A group of volunteers from tech companies like Slack, Google and Dropbox were entering Solano with good intentions seeking to learn and to support. We were going to learn more about the prison system and how to support currently incarcerated people looking to rehabilitate their lives upon release. Through an organization called Defy Ventures, these incarcerated individuals were learning the basic foundations of entrepreneurship through their Entrepreneurs in Training program.
The day started with us volunteers and incarcerated men all in the same warehouse room citing uplifting mantras followed by introductory break out sessions. We later discussed business ideas, job employment and entrepreneurial lessons learned. Listening to these men talk about their upbringing, what got them into trouble and what they were looking to do after prison, was both inspiring and heartbreaking. It opened my eyes to the untimely decisions they made, the wrath of the American criminal justice system, and the blighting ripple effect all of it has on their families and communities.
As I listened to their stories and we shared perspectives, I had this main takeaway:
These incarcerated men have potential. With the proper support and training, their potential can be realized upon release. The business world needs to take a hard look at its hiring behaviors, put aside its fears, and tap into this potential.
The Prison System
As of 2020, Black Americans represent 40% of the sentenced prison population, while comprising 13% of the U.S. adult population. Whites accounted for roughly 40% of incarcerated people while making up 64% of adults. Hispanics accounted for 16% compared with being 19% of adults in the United States.
The U.S. locks up people at a rate 3.5 times higher than Europe and at a rate 2.5 times higher than our neighbor to the north, Canada. With such a heavy investment in locking people away, it has also created a social stigma that these people are unemployable and that they’re still a threat to everyday society.
How does this stigma play out you ask? It manifests itself in the form of that age old question on a job application:
Have you ever been convicted of a felony?
What seems like a formality for you and I is a Sisyphus-like boulder for returning citizens. That question and the public perception around that question has led to lost job opportunities far and wide for this population. Lost income to support families, to support communities and to be a productive member of American society and economy.
This mentality that we have in America is in need of transformation. If one has relevant skills and experience and they check that box, can they effectively contribute to your team, your department or your company? Are they afforded the right to explain their transgressions, lessons learned and how they can be valuable contributors?
I believe that the answers to those questions are YES. There are burgeoning examples between Corporate America and Nonprofits partnering to rethink hiring behaviors by investing and employing formerly incarcerated people while simultaneously fighting recidivism.
When Corporate America and Nonprofits Collide
Corporate American culture as a whole still has a ways to go but there are examples of a shifting mindset around workforce employment and formerly incarcerated individuals. In April 2018, Slack embarked on shifting that mindset. Slack, which is the leading channel-based messaging platform, partnered with The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, The Last Mile and John Legend’s FREEAMERICA organization to build a pilot program for those looking to enter the tech industry.
After eight months of rigorous training, one-on-one coaching/mentoring and successfully completing the Next Chapter program at Slack’s HQ in San Francisco, the three apprentices in the first cohort are now full-time Slack employees and are huge value adds to our company culture.
Due to its success at Slack, Slack and Next Chapter recently expanded the program by partnering with Zoom and Dropbox to broaden its reach within the tech industry. The level of intention, strategy and partnership here is a case example in traits needed to dismantle exclusionary systemic policies and ways of thinking.
As with many current events in 2020, there is an active fight against social stigmas in the workplace and who is considered worthy of employment. That level of intention is what is necessary in order to make a broader impact on our society and economy at-large.
National Platforms
On a national level, reputable organizations like FREEAMERICA are changing the outlook on mass incarceration and justice reform. The organization’s Unlocked Futures program has teamed up with Bank of America and VC philanthropy fund, New Profit to transform the public mindset and break the stigma of folks returning from incarceration. Through financial and strategic support from these organizations, a cohort of 8 entrepreneurs are given resources to further drive their organizations towards fighting society’s ills: incarceration, homelessness, addiction, education and reentry.
The efforts of these entrepreneurs span many U.S. metro areas from San Francisco to Detroit to the DMV. Currently, the Unlocked Futures program is in its 2nd cohort and is a brilliant case of systematic progression within American industry and society. Organizations like FREEAMERICA are showing the financial industry that there is value behind investing dollars in an otherwise neglected workforce. It’s a change with how they are thinking about business and who they are doing business with.
Why Should My Company Care?
Your company should care because ignoring any talent ultimately is going to hurt your company, culturally and financially. Culturally, there is growing research that shows that returning citizens, once given an opportunity, are less likely to turnover and actually get promoted faster than those without records. Financially, there are 5.4 million unfilled jobs within the current U.S. Labor market and that means lost revenue by not having someone in that seat.
In addition, Uncle Sam offers federal tax benefits for employers through the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, making it more financially palatable.
With an increasingly competitive talent market, it’s time for Corporate America to address its taboo exclusionary policies and practices. Perhaps it takes form by “banning the box” on job applications. Perhaps it’s around being intentional with our hiring practices to open up the funnel of talent. Whatever the case may be, we need to treat America’s reentry population not as “jailbirds” or as “convicts” unfit to be a part of society and its workforce. If they have paid their debt to society then we should at least review their resume with the hopes of them contributing to society.
Recap (Conclusion)
Driving away from Solano that April day in 2017 started to put mass incarceration in perspective for me, both personally and professionally. I was fortunate enough to meet these men and to listen to their stories of transgression and future redemption. As a Black man in Corporate America, I am fortunate to have a successful career that allows me to challenge myself to reach my full potential while deriving a sense of purpose. As a Black professional who works in the talent recruiting/HR field, I am keenly aware of the effect those transgressions can have on future employment opportunities.
Those two things made me realize that those particular men are human beings who made one bad life choice. However, that singular choice shouldn’t define the rest of their lives. They are paying their debt to society in the form of harsh prison sentences and now looking to reenter society ready to work hard and prove themselves in a capitalist-driven society. Their crimes shouldn’t be permanently condemned in the form of perpetual unemployment and impoverishment.
They can be viable, productive members of a company or organization.
At the end of the day, there’s an opportunity gap — not a skills gap. Let’s reexamine our corporate hiring behaviors and build systems that bridge that gap. In 2020 and beyond, bridging the gap is going to be good business for all that are allowed to participate in it.
In memory of John Lewis.
Footnote: I am a current employee of Slack. These are my views, thoughts and opinions.
