Philadelphia City Council panel OKs bill to help former offenders find jobs

Legislation that would ban many employers from asking about a job candidate's criminal history until after conducting an interview passed unanimously through a City Council committee Wednesday and appeared poised to become law.

A hearing on the bill drew a long list of former offenders, clergy, and social workers who described "blanket discrimination" in the job market against people with criminal records.

The day was punctuated by testimony from City Hall's most recognizable ex-offender, former Councilman Rick Mariano, who served a four-year stint in federal prison for political corruption.

Mariano, an electrician by trade, said he had lined up a job at Philadelphia International Airport shortly after his release in the fall, but had been told that Homeland Security rules forbade him to work there.

"I'm not a terrorist," Mariano said. "It doesn't matter what you did. I'm a felon. That's going to follow me for the rest of my life."

While his appearance drew the most attention, at least half a dozen other former offenders told sometimes emotional stories about struggling to find work.

Reuben Jones, who served 15 years for aggravated assault, talked about interviewing for a job cleaning portable toilets. The interview went well - until the employer saw the criminal history on his paperwork.

"It's simply used to exclude people," said Jones, who said the rejection from that job had spurred him to get a master's degree and led to a position as an addictions counselor. "I'm incarcerated mentally just because I checked the box on the application."

Mayor Nutter supports the "ban the box" bill, and the sponsor, Councilwoman Donna Reed Miller, said she had the votes to get the legislation passed by the full Council.

The bill would prohibit employers from asking candidates about arrests that did not end in convictions and ban any inquiries into criminal history before a first interview.

The belief, Miller said, is that many former offenders could find work if given an interview and a chance to make an impression.

About one-fifth of the city's population has a criminal record, according to an estimate cited in the bill, and finding work greatly reduces the chance of a former offender committing another crime.

"I am totally supportive of the concept of this," said Councilman James F. Kenney, a member of the Public Safety Committee. "If you don't get rid of the box, it's going to go from the desk of the HR person right into the trash."

Deputy Mayor Everett Gillison, who testified before the committee, said the city had banned the box for hiring in all departments that can legally employ former offenders.

"We agree this will help level the playing field when it comes to competing for a job," he said. "Ex-offenders are not asking for a handout. All that is demanded is that an ex-offender be given a real chance."

The legislation would not affect professions required by law to conduct background checks, such as child care. Those professions generally cannot hire employees with certain kinds of convictions.

The bill also would not force any employer to hire a former offender or to hire anyone without a background check.

Six states and more than 25 cities, including Atlanta, Boston, Detroit, and Chicago, have passed some type of ban-the-box legislation, according to the Pennsylvania Prison Society.

The bill appears headed for passage at next week's Council meeting.

Mariano, who remains on house arrest and electronic monitoring until next month, is working for Impact Services, a Kensington nonprofit that counts former offenders among the groups it assists.

He thanked former Council colleagues Miller, Kenney, Jannie Blackwell, Darrell L. Clarke, and Frank DiCicco for sending him money in prison and Frank Rizzo for visiting him.

"Guys who were in prison understand how that is," he said. "They think prison's a free ride. You've got to buy your own underwear. You've got to buy everything."

Mariano ended his testimony by invoking the city's most famous former offender, Eagles quarterback Michael Vick.

"Remember how when he was down . . . nobody liked him. Then he starts winning, people start liking him," he said. "Well, give us a chance to win, too."