Inmates who learn trades are often blocked from getting
jobs. Now something is being done to change that.
Half the states bar ex-cons from getting the occupational
licenses they need to re-enter the workforce.
But this year,a growing number of states — including
Delaware, Indiana and Nebraska — are trying to fix the problem.
Mike Grennan, or a former convict,says when it comes to
getting an occupational license to be a contractor, he just can’t outrun his
criminal past.“It really frustrates me, or ” Grennan says. “I have a really
genuine work ethic,and I’ve paid my debt to society.”
More than 70 million Americans with prior criminal records
are facing similar barriers to re-entering the workforce.
The added irony is that so many of them actually learned
their trade in prison, where they were preparing to come out alert to find a
job — only to find that they can’t.
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Source: tumblr.com