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What impact does a criminal conviction have on employment?

On Behalf of | May 28, 2020 | Criminal Defense |

It can be difficult for anyone to secure gainful employment. It’s especially hard for those with criminal records. Crimes disappear off a person’s record like a bankruptcy after a few years in other countries. They never do in the United States, though. A criminal conviction sticks on a person’s record for the rest of their life here.

National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL) data shows that some 77 million Americans, or one-third of U.S. adults, have criminal records. Competition for jobs is fierce under the best of circumstances. Individuals who have a criminal record may liken landing a job to something akin to winning the lottery. The thought of them securing a position requiring an occupational license may be completely out of reach.

At least 1.7 million Americans are unemployed because they have felony convictions on their records, according to the NCSL. This unemployment results in a loss of more than $78 billion to the U.S. economy each year. Recidivism results from this when ex-cons are unable to secure employment.

The National Inventory of Collateral Consequences of Conviction (NICCC) has cataloged more than 15,000 state and federal statutes and codes that limit a person’s ability to obtain an occupational license if they have a criminal record. Professional licensing requirements vary by state and the role that an individual is seeking.

NICCC data shows that 600,000 new ex-cons are released into the community each year. African-American individuals are more than twice as likely to be arrested compared to their Caucasian counterparts. This population is also nearly 12 times more likely to be in prison when they’re between the ages of 18 and 19 than Caucasians.

If you’re facing criminal charges, then you need to understand what a conviction means for you and your future employment prospects. You face being permanently barred from participating in many sectors of the workforce. A Denver criminal defense attorney can help you devise strategies to employ so that you don’t struggle to find gainful employment in the future here in Colorado or anywhere else in the U.S.

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