Less than a fifth (16%) of UK businesses have recruitment policies in place that proactively target hiring ex-offenders, research has suggested.
Hiring ex-offenders
Removing employment barriers for ex-offenders at HMP Fosse Way
The study from IT asset disposal company DSA Connect, which runs programmes to support prisoners in developing new work skills and to find employment, has argued employers therefore risk missing out on the range of skills and quality work they can bring.
The poll of 1,177 small and medium-sized businesses argued around a quarter (24%) were struggling to recruit people with the right skills and experience and 27% said they had faced this in the past and may do again in the future.
Despite these shortfalls, many businesses were missing out by failing to implement a recruitment policy that actively targets ex-offenders, argued DSA Connect.
Among the fifth (16%) that did proactively target recruiting this cohort, around two thirds (62%) currently employed ex-offenders or have done so in the past.
Contrary to many stereotypical views, almost all (95%) of these said they were generally pleased with the quality of the work carried out.
More than a third (35%) said they had generally found ex-offenders’ work to be excellent and another 49% say their work was good. Around one in 10 (12%) say their work, in general, was average and just 2% said it was below average .
Among businesses that had never hired an ex-offender, the main reason given was simply the fact they had a criminal record or had been in prison (30%).
This was followed by such people not being the best applicant for the job (19%), a lack of relevant skills (16%), and no references (11%). Around a third (32%) did not know why they d never hired an ex-offender.
The main challenges in this area were ensuring the business had appropriate safety policies in place for all staff and customers (21%), the time and resource it required from senior leadership (14%), and getting sign-off from the executive and/or trustees on this recruitment policy (12%).
Harry Benham, chairman at DSA Connect, said: Many UK businesses are missing out on valuable employees by not having a recruitment policy to hire ex-offenders. All too often this is simply due to stereotypes and stigma surrounding hiring people with a criminal record or who have been in prison, and the research highlights that many businesses don t know why they ve never hired an ex-offender.
For businesses that have chosen to put specific recruitment policies in place and set up their business in a way that supports and encourages ex-offenders, the research shows that they are being rewarded with high-performing employees who are helping to plug the skills shortage, he added.
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