Millions of people in the United States have a criminal conviction and are searching for work. But most employers are reluctant to hire people with records, especially those with felony convictions, a disproportionate share of whom are people of color. In a new study, researchers sought to determine whether government-provided incentives could reduce employers’ reluctance to hire record holders. They found that a tax credit and insurance against losses boosted hiring managers’ willingness to hire applicants with prior records.
Millions of people in the United States have a criminal conviction and are searching for work. But most employers are reluctant to hire people with records, especially those with felony convictions, a disproportionate share of whom are people of color. In a new study, researchers sought to determine whether government-provided incentives could reduce employers’ reluctance to hire record holders. They found that a tax credit and insurance against losses boosted hiring managers’ willingness to hire applicants with prior records.
The study, by researchers at RAND and the University at Albany, appears in Criminology & Public Policy.
« Although society benefits when people with criminal records work, employers are often hesitant to hire them », explains Shawn Bushway, a senior policy researcher at the RAND and a professor at the University at Albany (SUNY), who led the study. « We tested whether this reluctance could be reduced with direct incentives that lower the cost of employing people with records or that compensate employers for the associated risk.
