Checkr.org Mobilizes and Expands the Mission of Fair Chance Hiring
At Checkr, we are committed to holding as a truth that all people deserve a chance at a first-class life. That means a criminal record should never be a life sentence to unemployment.
While the evidence is clear that employment is a strategy for reducing recidivism and helping to break cycles of poverty and homelessness; job seekers who have a criminal record all too often face extensive systematic barriers to professional success.
As of 2017, before pandemic-related disruptions, unemployment among system-impacted people was as high as 27%. That number has only grown since. Americans with prior convictions need a feasible path to livable wage careers. Fair chance hiring is a process of removing bias and fairly assessing candidates with criminal records, resulting in opportunities to excel in meaningful careers.
To understand the power that a job can have on someone reentering society, we invite you to watch formerly incarcerated Checkr team member, Jared, tell his story of reentry.
As the leading technology company in the background check industry, Checkr is uniquely positioned to disrupt the outdated systems which have historically kept this population out of the workforce, and to build technology that creates opportunities for all.
In 2021, Checkr launched its first philanthropic arm, Checkr.org, to mobilize the most effective solutions and actualize this vision. Ken Oliver was hired as the Executive Director to lead our nonprofit and CSR strategy. Oliver is a paralegal and former state policy director. He also served as the Executive Director of CROP (Creating Restorative Opportunities and Programs) before joining Checkr. He has dedicated his life to servant leadership and fighting discrimination against those who suffer from criminal convictions as they attempt to rebuild their lives and reintegrate back into the community.
As we close out 2022 and move into a new year, Checkr.org’s charge is to break down barriers and build bridges to equal opportunity in the future of work through advocacy, activation, and innovation.
We are so excited that Ken Oliver will be speaking about fair chance hiring at Denver Startup Week’s headline event on the HQ Main Stage from 2:30-4:00pm.
If you are interested in learning more about fair chance hiring for your organization, you can reach out to Ken directly at: ken.oliver@checkr.com.
You can find more fair chance hiring resources here, and on the Checkr blog.
