We help people with a criminal record get jobs
Indeed is committed to helping 30M people facing barriers get hired by 2030.
77 million people in the U.S. – one in three adults – have a criminal record.Colleen Chien, America’s Paper Prisons: The Second Chance Gap, 119 Mich. L. Rev. 519 (2020)
Despite growing evidence of longer tenure, equal or better performance, and no noticeable differences in behaviors such as misconduct, people with a criminal record unfairly face additional challenges to finding the right job.
How we’re helping job seekers
Find fair chance jobs
To make it easier to find the right opportunity, Indeed has added a “fair chance” filter.This label is provided for informational purposes only and is based on information included in job descriptions, such as that the employer follows “fair chance” hiring practices and that qualified applicants with criminal records will be considered. This information is not directly reported by employers. Please also note that many employers are required by law to consider applicants with criminal records. Indeed users are advised to check their state and local laws for more information about their rights. This helps job seekers find employers who are open to hiring people who have been impacted by the criminal legal system. There are two ways to find fair chance jobs:
Broad fair chance search
Add “fair chance” in the What box on the Indeed search page and click the Find jobs button.
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Encouraged to Apply filter
Add a job title, keyword, or company in the What box and click the Find jobs button, then select “fair chance” in the “Encouraged to Apply” filter list.
Indeed gives job seekers the opportunity to provide their demographic data, which helps us understand where we can further focus our efforts to make the greatest impact and help make hiring more inclusive. Tell us a bit about yourself through this brief survey.
Tips on how to search, apply, and prep for interviews
Having a criminal record can make it more difficult to get a job. This article gives job seekers with criminal records insight into what kinds of jobs to look for, ideas for ways to update their resume, and how to prepare for questions about their past.
People with a criminal record may face unique challenges in their job search. In this article, we explore a few of these challenges and offer tips for overcoming them along the way.
Job seekers can use Indeed’s free online tools to create or update their resume and get interview-ready. Job seekers can also get help from a professional resume writer. If you need help covering the cost for this, email career-services@indeed.com and let us know.
Indeed's Essentials to Work program
Extra support during your job transition
Get help clearing your record
Reach out to one of our partners near you to explore if you’re eligible to have your record cleared. (You may see some partners use “expungement,” “non-disclosure,” or “record sealing” in place of “record clearing”).
Free rides in select cities
Through our partnership with Lyft, you may be eligible for help with transportation to job training programs, interviews, your new job for up to the first three weeks, and record clearing appointments with a lawyer or at the court.
Free computers and hotspots for those eligible
If you need a computer or hotspot to help you find work, we can help! Through our partnership with PCs for People, we’re providing free devices to eligible individuals while supplies last.
If you meet the criteria, visit PCs for People, choose your device, and use code INDEEDESSENTIALS2023 at checkout. Then, log in or create an account to get your computer.
How we’re helping employers
Fair chance hiring is good for business
77 million people in the U.S. – one in three adults – have a criminal record.Colleen Chien, America’s Paper Prisons: The Second Chance Gap, 119 Mich. L. Rev. 519 (2020) People who were formerly incarcerated have an unemployment rate 5x higher than the national averagePrison Policy Initiative. Fair chance hiring is a set of practices to ensure job seekers with a past criminal record have equal employment opportunities. These practices ensure that an applicant’s skills and talents should be first assessed before considering an applicant’s past criminal record.
Fair chance hiring gives employers a leg up in a tight job market. It can lead to increased employee retention. It can bolster existing DEIB+ efforts, and more workers actively want their company to engage in fair chance hiring.
Getting started
How can employers attract, recruit, and retain candidates with a criminal record? Here are a few tips:
- Make your commitment clear and visible to candidates and employees in your job descriptions and other recruitment resources. Job seekers are eager to find and apply to jobs for which they’re more confident they’ll be considered. Adding your commitment to fair-chance hiring to job descriptions or company pages can help give job seekers with a criminal record greater confidence.
- Set explicit policies and be willing to change the status quo. Many employers are required by law to consider applicants with criminal records, so it’s important to check your state and local laws for more information. But you may want to go beyond compliance. For Indeed, this has meant agreeing upon and adhering to fair chance practices even in jurisdictions that didn’t necessarily require it. Explicitly applying these practices across the board helps remove ambiguity or case-by-case decision-making.
- Get help from partners. For leaders who are open to hiring job seekers with a criminal record but aren’t sure how to get started, there are plenty of resources and organizations that can help, such as the Second Chance Business Coalition and its Onramps Guide; Society of Human Resource Management’s Background Checks toolkit and Getting Talent Back to Work program; Banyan Labs; Center for Employment Opportunities; and Defy Ventures, to name a few.
Ready to tap into a broader pool of talent?
Post fair chance jobs
Click the checkbox
Click the People with a criminal record are encouraged to apply checkbox in the Set application preferences step of the U.S. job posting process on Indeed.
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Add fair chance language
Add this phrase to your U.S. job descriptions: “People with a criminal record are encouraged to apply.”
Many employers are required by law to consider applicants with criminal records.Indeed does not provide legal advice, and employers are advised to check their state and local laws for more information including requirements for job postings.
Everyone deserves a fair chance
Get inspired by the impact you can make with fair chance hiring
“ I'm not my record. I'm not my past. I'm here today, and I deserve a future. And I wanna work for that future.
Chivas Watson
“ I wish employers knew that a lot of people just make mistakes, but some are bigger than others.
David Zavala
“ I really would like to be known more for the sum of my accomplishments, for the things that I have overcome, for the work that I know how to do, for my work ethic, for my intelligence, for my skills, but absolutely not for the worst thing that I've ever done.
Lori Mellinger
“ I think I would want to be defined as someone who has redeemed himself, who has changed his life and also has looked to help other people.
Larry Miller
“ I can do anything I put my mind to do. It just takes that faith and hope and that second chance for someone to give me to prove myself to where I'm not defined by my record.
Missy Turner
“ The person I am today is radically different than the person I was in the past.
Atma Jodha Singh
“ I am a person who has worked incredibly hard to get where I'm at today, but I have my sights set on something greater.
James Morgan
A transformative story
Brittany Hart, a formerly incarcerated individual, found her job through the Indeed and Goodwill partnership.