Workers left behind in the economic recovery

Unemployment rates are at historic lows, but one group of workers still struggles to find a job. Many companies refuse to hire workers who have spent time in prison, leaving them either unemployed, exploited by unscrupulous employers, or forced to turn to unlawful activities to make money.

“There is a mindset that says because you committed a crime, you can never be trusted,” says Mary Bedeau, Deputy Executive Director of the Center for Employment Opportunities, which was created to support these workers. “People can learn from their mistakes and never do it again. At some point, we have to ask: How much money do we want to put in the carceral system to keep people behind bars who are perfectly functional?”

CEO got its start as an experimental project in 1970s New York City, to see the impact of providing people released from prison with immediate work and a paycheck. The experiment worked and, in the 1990s, CEO was established as an independent organization that has since grown to offer programs in 30 cities across a dozen states. 

People who have been involved in the justice system face a host of barriers to succeeding in work. 

“Lack of housing and personal stability is the biggest thing they face,” says Bedeau. “If you have been away for a long time and are now returning, there are children and family members that you need to reconnect with and rebuild your relationship with. That’s a lot to juggle with succeeding in a new job.”

Funding from the Consortium for Worker Education helps CEO provide support so workers can navigate these headwinds. 

“CWE’s funding supports the vocational services wing of the program, which focuses on helping participants address barriers to job start readiness,” says Bedeau. “The funding helps us deliver individual support so they can succeed and get through barriers. It’s highly needed.”

The CEO program has four phases. During intake and orientation, workers are screened to confirm that they have the necessary documents to work and they are informed of the services available to them. After enrollment, they start at transitional worksites, where they receive daily pay and perform cleanup or maintenance services. Participants get experience taking direction, being part of a team, and working under different supervisory styles. 

While spending part of their week at transitional worksites, participants also begin meeting with CEO’s job coaches to develop their resume and practice job interviews. At the same time, job development staff help place them into jobs and enroll them in CEO’s credentialed training programs 

After participants are placed into a job, the final phase begins: retention. CEO’s retention specialists stay in touch, support them through challenges transitioning into the workplace, and give advice when it comes time to take the next step in their career. 

CEO places workers into entry-level positions in a wide range of industries, including hospitality, building maintenance, homeless services, and deliveries. CEO offers stackable credentials that help many workers get jobs in construction. Many also are getting jobs at nonprofits, often helping other justice-involved workers stay on the path to employment stability. CEO is now finding new opportunities to place participants into jobs in IT and healthcare. Last year, CEO placed 563 New York City workers into jobs that averaged starting wages of $18 per hour.

Studies of the CEO model have found that the program reduced recidivism rates by 22% and that CEO participants are 48% more likely to be employed than similar workers outside the program. 

For CEO, these studies prove that the model works, but reducing recidivism is not the only goal that motivates the organization. 

“If people are meaningfully employed then recidivism is reduced, but we also want to ensure economic equity,” says Bedeau. “Given the on-going need for reliable workers, formerly incarcerated people represent an untapped pool of people who are ready and able to work.” 

NBC News recently profiled CEO and other organizations supporting justice-involved workers, including interviewing Dion Johnson, who benefited from the CEO program.

Johnson had been working as a janitor at LaGuardia Airport until, a month into the job, a background check revealed that he had spent time in prison. 

“When you tell someone this is where you have to go as a punishment as a result of an act that you committed, understandable. But then you don’t provide any training or any tools or give them anything to help themselves on the way up,” Johnson said. “Now they’re in society and they’re going to look for work, but they can’t find anything because no one will hire them, not even as a lower-level janitor.”

Johnson turned to CEO for support and went through its training and job placement program. After much work and job searching, he started a job at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital supporting other justice-involved people to get healthcare services.   

CEO recently published a statement of values, which was developed through a rigorous, year-long process that included input from hundreds of participants, staff, and stakeholders. The values emphasize that CEO is person-centered and prioritizes community, impact, and equity. 

“We are part of a community and we have a responsibility to that community,” says Bedeau. “We believe that our participants deserve and have earned socio-economic justice.”