Smart Business: Chamber-Led Smart Justice Initiatives

Nearly five million – that’s the gap between open jobs and workers to fill them in the United States. As chambers tackle workforce challenges in their communities, smart justice initiatives are helping close that gap.

Wipe the slate clean: In New York, as many as one in three people has encountered the criminal justice system. That’s why the Business Council of New York State is advocating to get a Clean Slate Act through the state legislature.

• The legislation would automatically clear a person’s record once eligible. It could help 1.4 million New Yorkers.
• A study by the University of Michigan found that people with sealed criminal records are 11% more likely to be employed within one year and less likely to re-offend within five years.

A second chance: The Toledo Chamber’s Re-Entry Development Initiative (REDI) was launched in 2017 to help broaden the local talent pool. As part of REDI, the chamber has also taken on fair-chance hiring. 

• The chamber’s fair-chance hiring toolkit helps businesses establish equitable practices and remove barriers to hiring.
• One particular focus has been manufacturing. The Northwest Ohio Manufacturing Alliance, a program of the chamber, will receive $930,000 over the next three years to establish career paths for underserved populations.

Call it a comeback: The Kentucky Chamber is facing the state’s opioid crisis head-on. Through the Kentucky Comeback initiative, the chamber is building a coalition to transform the state’s response to addiction and criminal justice.

• The chamber’s Fair Chance Academy teaches businesses how to become a fair-chance workplace through training and experiences.
• Academy participants are automatically enrolled in the Kentucky Transformational Employment Program, a joint effort by the chamber and its partners to help residents with long-term addiction recovery.

Building hope: Alabama has the sixth-highest incarceration rate in the country. A partnership between the Chamber of Commerce of West Alabama, West AlabamaWorks!, the Tuscaloosa County Commission and The Just Trust led to the creation of Building Hope.

• The online workforce portal is a one-stop shop for those impacted by the criminal justice system and connects people to resources, job opportunities and support.
• The site also makes a case for hiring ex-offenders, like access to government incentives and a diverse talent pool.

Click on the icons to see full case studies for each initiative.

Go deeper: 

• Read more on the ACCE blog about the benefits of second-chance hiring and the chamber’s role.
• See the ACCE Foundation’s hub for smart justice reform, including second-chance hiring examples and clean slate initiatives.
• Learn more about Second Chance Month, observed in April.