City Jobs Available to Ex-Cons

By Amy Hart in News on Jan 26, 2006 1:24PM

It used to be that if you were an ex-con, you needed clout to get a job with the City of Chicago. But after examining the issue for a year, Mayor Daley has decided that now all ex-cons can be considered for all jobs.

Earlier this week Daley announced implementation of the new policy would not be easy, but that it was necessary to ensure the more than 20,000 ex-offenders who serve their time and return to life in Chicago each year are given a fair shot to reestablish themselves in society.

Yesterday Chicagoist heard some people freaking out and worrying that the city would now be run by criminals. Of course, some would say it already is. But keep in mind that this change is only opening up the application process to ex-cons, not guaranteeing them jobs. And if the true intent of the criminal justice system is to reform prisoners, then giving them a chance to compete for employment after they have completed their sentences only sounds fair.

As David Rosa, a convicted murderer who served on Daley’s task force said, “"I look at being released from the penitentiary as being set up for failure. When we get back into our neighborhoods, there's nothing there. ... You feel that's going to be the happiest day of your life, but it really isn't. The reality starts setting in. Where are you going to live at? Who's going to hire you?"