‘Ban the box’ legislation to get another try

The Idaho Legislature will once again consider “ban the box” legislation that is intended to make it easier for people convicted of a crime to apply for jobs.

Such legislation was proposed last year, but was pulled by its sponsor, Sen. Cherie Buckner-Webb, D-Boise, who confirmed she would be trying a version of the bill again this session.

The legislation put questions about an applicant’s criminal record further down the hiring path for any company with more than five employees. It is typically known as “Ban the Box” because it keeps employers from having check boxes about criminal records on job applications.

If passed, the legislation would require employers to determine whether the applicant is otherwise qualified for the job and then extend a conditional offer of employment before considering an applicant’s previous criminal conviction and conducting a background check. Employers could then consider applicants on a case-by-case basis rather than by issuing a blanket denial to any applicant with a criminal record.

The new version, which has not yet been introduced, has been tweaked slightly from last year.

“The bill still doesn’t permit discussion of someone’s previous criminal conviction until a conditional offer of employment has been made, but we did remove the requirement that employers provide notice to applicants about why they were not offered the job and instead added a negligent hiring provision for employers so long as they appropriately assess someone’s criminal background when determining fit for a position,” said Kathy Griesmyer, policy director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Idaho.

Asking whether a job applicant has a criminal record reduces the likelihood of a callback or job offer by nearly 50 percent for those who do, according to statistics the ACLU provided last year.

More than 150 cities and counties have adopted the legislation, while 33 states have adopted statewide laws or policies and 10 states have mandated the removal of conviction history questions from job applications for private employers as well, according to the National Employment Law Project.