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Philadelphia’s Fair Chance Hiring Initiative hopes to lower recidivism, provide employment for previously incarcerated

People who were in prison, on parole or probation in the last seven years are eligible for this program.

This workforce initiative will reimburse employers for wages paid out to employees and provide retention bonuses.
This workforce initiative will reimburse employers for wages paid out to employees and provide retention bonuses.Read moreCynthia Greer

Hiring people who have been impacted by the justice system, whether from being incarcerated or put on parole or probation, can change a person’s life, but also reduce the chances of them returning to prison again.

However, “returning citizens” can find it difficult to get a job after being released. To combat recidivism, the Department of Commerce created the Fair Chance Hiring Initiative in 2017, a program that financially incentivizes employers to hire returning citizens and keep them employed for the long term.

Lack of employment plays a key role in people being rearrested or reincarcerated. In Pennsylvania, the recidivism rate has stayed at around 65% for nearly 15 years. In Philadelphia county, one out of every three people released from prison in 2015 was rearrested or incarcerated within a year, with nearly half between the ages of 25 and 40 years old, according to a 2018 Philadelphia Reentry Coalition report.

While reducing recidivism is a lot more complicated than simply getting a job once released from prison — as returning citizens still can face issues around mental health, substance use and complicated family and housing situations — getting a quality job that pays well and supports an individual goes a long way toward success.

According to the Brookings Institute, people are less likely to commit crimes or be reincarcerated when they have stable and secure full-time employment. Conversely, in Pennsylvania, parolees who were unemployed for 12 months after release were 16% more likely to return to prison, according to Pennsylvania Department of Corrections data. There is a benefit to hiring returning citizens too, according to evidence-based research platform IZA World of Labor: they are more likely to stay with a company for longer when given a quality job.

For Philly business owners looking to find new hires, ways to help justice-impacted workers or take part in a workforce incentive program, below is a breakdown of the Fair Chance Hiring Initiative and how to participate.

What is the Fair Chance Hiring Initiative?

The Fair Chance Hiring Initiative, operated by the Department of Commerce, connects returning citizens to available jobs in the city and provides employers with financial incentives to help pay their wages and retain employees. The program is available for people who were incarcerated, on parole or on probation in the last seven years.

Who is eligible for the Fair Chance Hiring Initiative?

Any Philadelphia-based company can participate in the Fair Chance Hiring Initiative as long as the company:

  1. Generates less than $5 million in annual revenue

  2. Hires a Philadelphia resident who was incarcerated, on parole or on probation for any offense in the last seven years, due to a court sentence.

What are the requirements for Fair Chance Hiring Initiative?

There are requirements for both the employer and employee to adhere to within the 90-day grant term, otherwise, both parties won’t be eligible for wage reimbursement or retention bonuses.

Employers must:

  1. Pay FCHI employees $15 per hour.

  2. Provide FCHI employees with a minimum of 21 work hours per week.

  3. Be registered and licensed with the City of Philadelphia; all applicable taxes must be current.

Employees must:

  1. Be a Philadelphia resident before and after incarceration or government supervision and at the time of their hire, and for the duration of their employment.

  2. Released from incarceration or placed on parole or probation that was part of a court sentence. This must have taken place within seven years of their first day of work.

  3. Hired by an approved FCHI employer and retain employment for at least 90 calendar days.

How much is the Fair Chance Hiring Initiative grant?

To receive the financial incentives of this program, employers and FCHI employees need to adhere to program requirements and retain employment for at least 90 calendar days. That is when the city will release the first set of reimbursements to the employer. Then, if both parties successfully complete the 180-day grant term, then both employers and FCHI employees receive financial incentives. Here’s the breakdown.

  1. Wage reimbursement: The city will reimburse employers $6 for every hour an FCHI employee works, up to 960 hours within 180 calendar days of being hired. Employers will be reimbursed for the first set of hours after 90 calendar days of employment and then again after 180 days of employment.

  2. Employer retention bonus: Employers will receive a one-time $500 bonus if their FCHI employee completes the 180-day grant term.

  3. Employee retention bonus: FCHI employees will receive a one-time $1,000 (taxable) bonus if they complete the 180-day grant term.

How to apply to the Fair Change Hiring Initiative

The Department of Commerce works with employers to onboard them at a comfortable pace. All employers need to do to begin is email FairChanceHiring@phila.gov. From there, staffers with the commerce department will work around the employer’s schedule to enroll them into the program and get the connected to possible hires. Here’s a breakdown.

For employers:

  1. Email FairChanceHiring@phila.gov. You should hear back within two business days.

  2. Schedule a meeting with the Department of Commerce to discuss your business, the hiring of employees and identifying any support services that may be needed.

  3. Receive employee referrals from the Department of Commerce or their partner workforce organizations to find eligible employees.

  4. Hire justice-impacted employees and retain employees for at least 90 days.

For employees:

  1. The Fair Chance Hiring Initiative is a program directed towards employers, however, you can get connected with the program through the Department of Commerce or the Office of Reentry Partnerships to get involved as an employee.

  2. Fair Chance Hiring Initiative: Email FairChanceHiring@phila.gov.

  3. Office of Reentry Partnerships:

    1. Call (215) 683-3370.

    2. Email orp@phila.gov.

    3. Fill out this form to request a support call from ORP staff

The Philadelphia Inquirer is one of more than 20 news organizations producing Broke in Philly, a collaborative reporting project on solutions to poverty and the city’s push toward economic justice. See all of our reporting at brokeinphilly.org.