Latest Post
Blog
Tag

employment

Browsing
Employment

FDIC Loosens Employment Requirements; Ex-Offenders Now Eligible for Banking Jobs

By

A one-time mistake shouldn’t land you in a pile of paperwork, financial distress, strict time constraints, and a lifetime of career obstacles and rejections. Luckily, many agencies have been taking action to help those with prior convictions avoid the life-altering and demeaning roadblocks previously mandated for even the smallest of legal mishaps.

One such agency is the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which previously barred many individuals with prior convictions from working in banks. The FDIC recently issued a new and final ruling on Section 19 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act (FDI Act) that is intended to help those with minor criminal records to find careers in the banking industry.

Section 19 of the FDI Act focuses on the restrictions the FDIC imposes on those seeking jobs within the banking industry. Individuals with any convictions involving a breach of trust, dishonesty, or money laundering, or who were connected with a crime related to those mentioned, needed to obtain written consent to work in the banking industry.

Under the new ruling of Section 19, many limitations on individuals with prior convictions have been lifted or minimized. Now, all expunged convictions are excluded from restrictions. Additionally, the de minimus exclusion has been expanded to include two de minimus crimes on one’s record instead of one. This expansion increases the de minimus exclusion threshold to small dollar theft from $500 to $1,000 and crimes committed by using fake IDs to circumvent age restrictions in buying products or entering premises.

This final ruling will replace the old ruling of Section 19, effectively saving roughly 30% of previously affected individuals from submitting applications altogether. This will help not only those affected by Section 19 restrictions, but also those working in financial institutions that regulate these applications.

Now more than ever, it’s crucial to get minor convictions expunged from your record. Don’t let minor mishaps get in the way of the stable career that you want. Reach out to the experts at Easy Expunctions to see how our record-clearing software can return your life to normal!

Keep Reading
By
Background Checks

Illinois Law Reduces Restrictions on Opening Businesses for Those With Criminal Records

By

Illinoisans with a criminal record now have more job opportunities, as House Bill 2760 took effect on January 1st. This new law reduces restrictions on applying for professional licenses. It’s essentially a very productive afterthought to a 2017 bill created for the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation to use when deciding if an applicant is fit for a job. The law declares that a criminal record should not prevent someone from acquiring a license.

While the department doesn’t exactly deny too many people—a recent study found fewer than 1 percent of eligible license applicants were denied because of past convictions—this law addresses public perception that would cause someone to not apply for fear of rejection.

An increase in people receiving professional licenses and opening new businesses are great indicators of economic prosperity in Illinois. This law will grant reformed convicts the opportunity to provide for loved ones, hire employees, pay taxes, and stimulate the local economy. Illinois is attempting to help put people to work and increase its tax base.

The IDFPR welcomes all applications but uses mitigating factors to choose who will be accepted. Some of these factors include the completion of a sentence, a progress report from a probation or parole officer, evidence of rehabilitation, and the lack of relation between the person’s conviction and duties of the job sought. If they do reject an applicant, rest assured that they must explain the reason for denial.

Keep Reading
By
Employment

What Are Employers Looking for When Conducting Background Checks?

By

Background checks are an inevitable part of modern-day life, and depending on hiring standards, they can make or break your chances of employment. Hiring standards vary by employer and may be regulated by state or federal law. A background check simply screens an individual to test whether or not an applicant meets the hiring standards set by a particular employer. However, there are some general red flags that typically influence an application status at most levels of employment.

Approximately 96% of businesses perform background checks on candidates, and a vast majority of those employers use criminal record searches. Although background checks include current pending charges, misdemeanor convictions, felony convictions, acquitted charges, and dismissed charges, most employers consider the nature of the crime. In order to protect the employees, customers, and the company’s reputation, violent and sexual offenses are rarely swept under the rug, and most employers would consider these types of convictions red flags. However, 67% of employers say that they allow their applicants to explain their criminal history before completely ruling them out. If you are applying to jobs that require high security clearance or involve interaction with children or elderly people (including school bus driving) and your criminal record contains any major offense, evidence of mental health issues, sex offenses, or cyber crimes, you will be denied from the job. The employer is usually in favor of the applicant with a clean record.

A clear record empowers you. If your criminal record has prevented you from getting the job of your dreams, you should consider getting your record expunged or sealed from the public eye. Contact Easy Expunctions for more information on affordable record-clearing.

Keep Reading
By