The group Second Chance Alliance wants Durham to prohibit employers — public and private — from asking an applicant, on a job application or in the first interview, if he/she has ever been a convicted of a crime. The group says it’s unfair to screen out applicants this way. Wrong. Second chances in life come when a person pays their debt to society, expresses remorse, fully discloses their offense when asking to be considered for a privilege such as a job, and earns back society’s trust.
The Herald-Sun also reports that two Triangle senators — Floyd McKissick (D-Durham) and Ellie Kinnaird (D-Orange) have sponsored a bill that would prohibit local governments from asking for criminal history of applicants before conducting a job interview. It’s another well intentioned but wrong-headed policy proposal.
