The formerly incarcerated offer a ready, willing and able talent pool that too often is overlooked because employers lack the knowledge of how to hire them — or are wary of bringing on board someone with a criminal record.
TalentFirst CEO Council member Jason Kehr, owner and president of Valley City Electronic Recycling, was once among the wary. But his company now is a leader in second-chance hiring. And he has become a passionate advocate for the practice.
When Kehr bought Valley City a dozen years ago, the company already had been employing some returning citizens. He was skeptical.
“I was watching these guys like a hawk, because the stigma is real, for everybody,” he said. “What I found was these were some of the best workers we had. They were the most loyal, the most hardworking, and tended to really value their job.”
A chance encounter with a parolee staying at a halfway house was the “no turning back” moment for Valley City Recycling. That successful hire led to multiple other hires — an experience Kehr continues to share with a grassroots network of fellow business owners.
“There really is a pipeline here for those who are willing to access it,” he said. “You’ve got to have an open mind. And there is a learning curve, no question. But you have that with employees without records, too.”
Get training to access this talent pool
Kehr navigated that learning curve largely on his own, including learning how to conduct due diligence and how to be flexible with obligations that returning citizens have. And he notes smaller businesses like his are better-positioned to drive progress with second-chance hiring.
But employers of all sizes have an opportunity gain the knowledge — and tap into this underutilized talent pool — by participating in the next cohort of Hiring Formerly Incarcerated Individuals.
This short microcredential course, developed by a partnership of TalentFirst, Calvin University, and the Michigan Department of Corrections, equips HR leaders, managers, and business owners with the knowledge and skills to implement second-chance hiring.
The next cohort begins Oct. 7, and participants have two weeks to complete two to three hours of online professional development covering:
- Understanding the criminal justice system
- Hiring considerations
- Employability
- Accessing supports and services
- Creating a flourishing culture
Those who complete the course will receive a digital badge and, if desired, 2.5 SHRM professional development credits. Additionally, they can join their fellow participants in a Nov. 12 tour of the innovative prison-education program at the Department of Corrections’ Vocational Village in Ionia. This will be followed by a workshop to discuss next steps. This portion of the program earns seven SHRM professional development credits.
‘An invaluable experience’
For TalentFirst members who participated in in the program last spring, the online coursework was a valuable investment in professional development — and the tour of the Vocational Village was eye-opening. Some observations:
Stephanie Schoenherr, director of Human Resource Operations for Cascade Engineering , which has been deeply engaged in second-chance hiring for years: “I didn’t realize we’d have a chance to speak directly with the program participants at the prison. Hearing their stories and being able to connect those to the work we’re doing was inspiring.”
Mary Rosser, chief human resources officer for Trinity Health Grand Rapids, which had five members of the HR team participate in the last cohort and plans to enroll five more from Trinity Southeast Michigan in the fall sessions: “The Vocational Village offers a pipeline of highly skilled individuals who, as returning citizens, bring excellent technical skills as well as the critical soft skills essential to the workplace. These citizens are eager, committed and ready to meaningfully contribute to the success of organizations.”
Janis Petrini, owner and operator of Express Employment Professionals, which serves a large portion of the workforce that needs jobs and have convictions: “We can share this with other employers and hope to have them experience the same thing. The No. 1 desire of returning citizens is to have a good job when they return back to their communities. Employers considering whether to participate need to invest the time to do this and they need to talk as an organization about how they are going to be a key circle of support for returning citizens.”
Being open to opportunity
Kehr said the biggest obstacle he encounters when talking about second-chance hiring is convincing employers to have an open mind.
“It’s the old adage, you can’t judge a book by its cover,” he said. “It took me several years to get on board. So I can understand people in C-suites and HR being equally skeptical without knowing and talking to people. It could be a big leap in their minds. I think once they’re open to it, it’s a fairly easy sell.”
Kehr notes Valley City doesn’t employ only returning citizens — they hire the best qualified people. But employers who face a talent shortage are at a disadvantage if they automatically exclude returning citizens, he said.
“There’s no shortage of people looking for jobs who have criminal records attached. I’m obviously biased, but the loyalty is unbelievable. The culture that you can create is great because you’ve got different people with different ideas, different backgrounds, jelling in with your current workforce,” he said.
“When you start talking about retention, improved corporate culture, it really does kind get their attention. It’s just a matter of being open to it.”
REGISTER NOW
Learn about the Calvin Prison Initiative, a partnership between Calvin University and Calvin Theological Seminary, that provides a Christian liberal arts education to inmates at the Richard A. Handlon Correctional Facility in Ionia.
