Louisville unanimously passes ‘ban the box’ legislation

In a 26-0 vote, the Louisville Metro Council has approved legislation that will make Louisville, Ky., the latest to ban the box. Louisville joins cities such as Charlotte, N.C., San Francisco, and Seattle, as well as states including Rhode Island and California in their efforts against discrimination. This movement prevents employers from immediately disqualifying applicants with criminal histories. The city was already in the habit of not asking applicants about felony records, but Mayor Greg Fischer has now made the “compassionate legislation” into law. Louisville’s city government, vendors and contractors will no longer include questions about employee criminal history on their job applications, giving convicts a fair chance at jobs they previously might have been disqualified from. A candidate may still choose to disclose his or her criminal record during the point in the pre-employment process when a background check is likely to take place. Then, it is on the employer to consider the position the candidate is up for, and whether or not the specific crime will affect the candidate’s ability to do the job well. The employer should also take into consideration the candidate’s age at the time of the offense, how much time has elapsed since conviction, his or her parole or probation status, and if any rehabilitation efforts have been undertaken. It is estimated that this measure will help the approximately 160,000 people in the area that have a criminal record to be considered for jobs beyond the application stage, now that they have paid their debt to society. Image courtesy of phasinphoto/ FreeDigitalPhotos.net]]>