A proposed ordinance that would bar employers in Los Angeles from asking job applicants to reveal their criminal records during the initial stages of the recruitment process will go before the City Council Wednesday.
The measure would institute a policy known as “fair chance” or “ban the box,” requiring employers to remove check boxes or questions from job forms that ask about an applicant’s criminal record.
If approved by the City Council, employers with 10 or more workers and city contractors would be prohibited from asking about criminal history until a conditional job offer has been made.
An employer that ultimately decides against hiring a person after learning about his or her criminal record would need to provide a justification for why the job offer is being rescinded.
City officials point to statistics from the National Institute of Justice that show the likelihood of a job offer goes down 50 percent if an applicant has a criminal record.
The measure is part of a national movement aimed at giving formerly incarcerated people a better chance at obtaining employment. Representatives of groups like A New Way of Life, LA Voice, Homeboy Industries and All of Us or None have spoken in favor of Los Angeles adopting the ban at City Council committee meetings.
