Charlotte ‘bans the box’ on initial job applications

Charlotte, N.C., joins with other large cities such as Seattle and San Francisco in their decision to “ban the box” by removing questions from job applications regarding an applicant’s criminal history. City job applicants were previously required to inform a potential employer if they had “ever pled guilty to, or been convicted of, a crime other than a minor traffic violation” by checking a box on the job application. City Manager Ron Carlee has ensured that the question has been removed from all applications for city jobs that do not affect public safety or city statutes. “It sends the message to people who have paid their debt to society that you can get a fair shake,” said Charlotte School of Law professor Jason Huber. The jobs that have not eliminated the question include positions in law enforcement or airport security, for example. These positions will still include this question on applications for reasons of public safety. But qualified candidates for other positions will not be eliminated in the early hiring process due to a previous conviction. A North Carolina background check will also not be conducted on any specific candidate early on in the process, further reducing the chances of his or her immediate disqualification. The city will still run background checks on finalists for a given job, but will not declare a candidate ineligible based only on criminal history. Instead, each finalist will be considered on a case-by-case basis, depending on how their history may affect their ability to work in the position for which they are applying. Rhode Island and several other states and cities have implemented or are currently considering ban-the-box legislation.]]>