A Fair Chance

Our nation is finally getting “smart on crime” after decades of policies like the War on Drugs. Today, we’re a nation where almost one in three adults—that’s 70 million people—has an arrest or conviction record.

That record has become a scarlet letter for job-seekers who can’t even get their foot in the door for an interview. Local communities have responded by adopting fair-chance hiring laws to ensure that people with records aren’t locked out of employment.

The movement is growing fast. More than 100 cities, counties, and states have adopted fair-chance hiring policies—42 in the past year alone. And that’s paving the way for action at the federal level. Here's how you can help.

Please SIGN THIS PETITION urging President Obama to take executive action to create a federal fair-chance hiring policy that covers federal agencies and contractors. There’s strong bipartisan support for opening up opportunity for millions of Americans unfairly shut out from the job market.

NELP’s new report, Advancing a Federal Fair-Chance Hiring Agenda, makes the case for reform and lays out a detailed plan. Read more about it in the Washington Post.

Over the coming months, NELP and our partners in this effort, All of Us or None and the PICO National Network, will be working to build pressure for presidential executive action, so that everyone has a fair chance at federal agency and contractor jobs. Thanks for your support!

—Maurice, Michelle, and the NELP team