Illinois could soon become the fifth U.S. state to "ban the box" that inquires about criminal history on initial applications for most private sector jobs.
The state House recently voted 63-53 to approve the "Job Opportunities for Qualified Applicants Act," which would require private employers or employment agencies in Illinois with 15 or more employees to evaluate an applicant's skills and qualifications before asking about criminal history. Under the measure, sponsored by State Rep. Rita Mayfield (D-Waukegan), employers would be allowed to conduct background checks and request conviction information from applicants, but not until later in the interviewing process.
Three of the five candidates vying to unseat incumbent State Rep. Derrick Smith (D-Chicago) in the crowded 10th District Illinois House race took part in a forum Wednesday night, discussing everything from education to TIFs. Progress Illinois was there for the discussion.
At
an education forum in Oak Park Wednesday, State Sen. Kimberly Lightford
(D-Maywood) said she plans to introduce legislation to help stop the
Illinois State Charter Commission's "hidden agenda" of expanding charter
schools across the state.
The Illinois legislature set up
this special charter governing body back in 2011. The commission has
autonomy from the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and the power to
override local school boards if they reject applications from charter
companies looking to open schools in their communities. A number of
education activists have blasted the commission, saying its sole purpose
is to override these charter denials.
"This independent
authorizer, they've hired a lobbyist that has a salary, and there's a
hidden agenda," Lightford said at the forum, held at Oak Park's Percy Julian Middle School.
"(School) funding would come away from you and go directly into this
situation, and I think it's something we all should be very mindful
of."
Lightford said she would introduce a bill at some point during next year's legislative session that would get rid of the commission's
override powers and give charter authorizing responsibility back to ISBE.
Gov.
Pat Quinn on Thursday issued an administrative order that "bans the
box" on applications for state government jobs, requiring state agencies
to evaluate an applicant's skills before asking about criminal history.
Going forward, applicants will not have
to check a box on state employment applications indicating whether or
not they have pled guilty to or been convicted of any criminal offense
other than a minor traffic violation. State agencies are still allowed
to conduct background checks and request conviction information, but not
until later in the interviewing process.
"It just removes that first hurdle," said DeAngelo Bester, co-executive director of the Chicago-based Workers Center For Racial Justice.
"A lot of times when people apply for a job and check that box off,
that application is thrown in the garbage. This will at least give them
the opportunity to get an interview."
In the wake of a Bureau of Justice Statistics report
that revealed Illinois’ juvenile detention facilities have some of the
highest sexual abuse rates in the country, state legislators have called
an emergency hearing to discuss the issue.
The Restorative
Justice Committee will meet July 30 at the Michael A. Bilandic Building
in downtown Chicago, and testifying before them will be Department of Juvenile Justice (DOJJ) Director Arthur Bishop, as well as members from the prison watchdog group the John Howard Association and officials from the Bureau of Justice Statistics.
“Before pointing fingers, we need to ask questions,” State Rep. La Shawn Ford
(D-Chicago), the committee chairperson, told Progress Illinois. “We
want answers from the results of the study, and solutions moving
forward.”
As the new Illinois General Assembly takes oath today, it is hard not to notice that three of its members are facing criminal charges, points out the Associated Press.
Illinois could soon become the fifth U.S. state to "ban the box" that inquires about criminal history on initial applications for most private sector jobs.
At
an education forum in Oak Park Wednesday, State Sen. Kimberly Lightford
(D-Maywood) said she plans to introduce legislation to help stop the
Illinois State Charter Commission's "hidden agenda" of expanding charter
schools across the state.
In the wake of a 