I wanted to post a piece to get readers of theRecord involved in a project that Unlock is running to challenge the employment discrimination faced by people with convictions.
As part of this work, alongside supporting and challenging employers to develop good practice, we’re also looking for input from people with convictions.
In particular, there’s two questions that we’ve recently published that I’m looking for people to help us with if possible:
- How would you like to be treated when applying for work?
- Do you have evidence of bad practice from employers?
How would you like to be treated when applying for work?
In particular, we’d like to know what you think is a ‘fair’ way of dealing with criminal records as part of the recruitment process.
To do this we’ve put together a short survey. You can complete the survey online survey here (you can stay anonymous if you wish).
Alternatively, you can read the questions here and email your answers to employer@unlock.org.uk.
Do you have evidence of bad practice from employers?
We’re also on the look-out for evidence of bad practice by employers with regards to the policies and processes that they have in place for job applicants with criminal records.
This could include employers that:
- Have a blanket policy of not recruiting anybody with unspent convictions
- Carry out DBS checks for roles not eligible for them
- Request applicants to provide a copy of their ‘police record’ (also known as ‘enforced subject access’)
- Don’t give applicants an opportunity to explain their criminal record
Find out more details here about how to send us examples and evidence of bad practice.
More information
There’s more information about this project on the main Unlock website.
You can sign up to receive email updates about this work by subscribing here and selecting ‘News on our work challenging employment discrimination’.
