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Official Website

of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

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    Local, state, and federal government websites often end in .gov. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania government websites and email systems use "pennsylvania.gov" or "pa.gov" at the end of the address. Before sharing sensitive or personal information, make sure you're on an official state website. 

    Community Reentry

    Rejoining the community is tough for those with a criminal past. Yet, steady work is vital to prevent going back to crime. Unfortunately, having a record makes finding a job harder. Pennsylvania's returning citizens face big job search barriers. Employers often hesitate to hire them, thinking it's risky or not knowing enough. This toolkit helps employers, providers, and workers. It shows the benefits of hiring returning citizens and offers support in overcoming job search challenges.

    Second Chance & Fair Chance Employment Information

    Chekr connects people and businesses through fair chance employment initiatives – activating opportunities to transform lives, strengthen communities and drive economic growth. There is also an employer’s resource guide to guide employers through the process of becoming a fair chance employer.

    Check out the How to Be a Fair Chance Employer Guide for more information.

    DKBF has free video content and interviews on Second Chance employment, and it’s designed for business leaders and human resource professionals looking to understand and adopt a “Second Chance” talent philosophy within their organizations.

    This healthcare toolkit helps the healthcare industry implement appropriate workforce development strategies and invest in qualified workers. This toolkit avoids the use of stigmatizing labels, like “ex-offender” or “felon,” in favor of the term “people with records,” which seeks to decouple an individual’s past mistakes from his or her future potential.

    Learn how CEO’s and large employers are increasingly adopting second chance employment programs to source talent. Here are resources to understand and explain the benefits of second chance hiring and advancement programs to companies, employees, and candidates.

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce addresses the tight labor market and challenges in finding and retaining skilled workers by looking at Second Chance Hiring. These hiring strategies look at fair and equal employment opportunities for individuals with criminal records, allowing companies to weather the ongoing hiring shortage. Additional resources are below:

    Employer & Human Resource Tools

    The Federal Bonding Program was created as an incentive to employers to hire at-risk, hard to place job seekers and may provide an employer a business insurance policy that protects an employer against loss of money or property due to employee dishonesty.

    The SHRM Foundation, with generous support from the Lumina Foundation, offers a certificate program that is free and open to all. The Getting Talent Back to Work certificate, is a multi-faceted program with the actionable knowledge and tools HR professionals, hiring managers, front-line supervisors, and other HR professionals need to attract, hire, and retain people with criminal and conviction records. Certification has a 10-hour time commitment.

    The Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) is a federal tax credit available to employers for hiring individuals from specific target groups with significant employment barriers. The WOTC program helps incentivize workplace diversity and inclusion and facilitates access to good jobs for all American workers.