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8 U. Pa. J. Lab. & Emp. L. 981 (2005-2006)
The Background Check Balancing Act: Protecting Applicants with Criminal Convictions While Encouraging Criminal Background Checks in Hiring

handle is hein.journals/upjlel8 and id is 993 raw text is: Comments THE BACKGROUND CHECK BALANCING ACT: PROTECTING APPLICANTS WITH CRIMINAL CONVICTIONS WHILE ENCOURAGING CRIMINAL BACKGROUND CHECKS IN HIRING Elizabeth A. Gerlach* I. INTRODUCTION Criminal convictions carry a stigma.' The stigma associated with criminal activity may impact employment opportunities.2 Employers may avoid hiring individuals with criminal convictions because they fear being exposed to liability and feel a criminal conviction reflects poorly on an individual's character, making the employee less desirable and less qualified. However, once people who have been convicted of a crime have served their debt to society, they need the opportunity for meaningful employment in order to rehabilitate their lives and avoid falling into a cycle * J.D. candidate, 2006, University of Pennsylvania Law School; B.A., 2003, Baldwin- Wallace College. 1. See, e.g., PAUL H. ROBINSON, CRIMINAL LAW § 1.2, at 13 (1997) (The punishment of an offender tends to stigmatize and condemn the offender and his or her conduct.); Eric Rasmusen, Stigma and Self-Fulfilling Expectations of Criminality, 39 J.L. & EcON. 519, 519 (1996) (A convicted criminal suffers not only from public penalties but from stigma, the reluctance of others to interact with him economically and socially.); Jennifer Leavitt, Note, Walking a Tightrope: Balancing Competing Public Interests in the Employment of Criminal Offenders, 34 CONN. L. REV. 1281, 1282 (2002) (Lifetime stigma as a felon hinders ex-offenders from fully participating as active members of society.). 2. See Leavitt, supra note 1, at 1282 (noting employers' reluctance to interact with offenders as a result of stigmatization). 3. See Avi Brisman, Double Whammy: Collateral Consequences of Conviction and Imprisonment for Sustainable Communities and the Environment, 28 WM. & MARY ENVTL. L. & POL'Y REV. 423, 436 (2004) (Many employers fear those convicted of crimes or believe that ex-offenders will not be reliable employees.).

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