www.saferfoundation.org 1

Safer Foundation

Policy & Advocacy

Presenter: Anthony Lowery

Director, Policy & Advocacy

anthony.lowery@saferfoundation.org Office Phone: 312-431-8992

Frontline Workforce Association

Chicago, Illinois

January 13, 2016

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OVERVIEW ABOUT SAFER FOUNDATION

Safer Foundation is a 44-year-old, not-for-profit organization, headquartered in Chicago. Our mission is to support through a full spectrum of services, the efforts of people with criminal records to become employed, law-abiding members of the community and as a result, reduce recidivism.

10 locations in Illinois and one in Iowa

Nearly 300 employees on staff

A 62% reduction in recidivism rates

with clients achieving 30 days of

employment

Over 3,900 job starts in FY 15

$22 million budget in FY 15

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PROGRAMS RETENTION SERVICES MODEL: AN INTEGRATED FRAMEWORK

Group Orientation

Pathway

Placement

Intake and

Assessment

Transitional Employment

Pathway

Supportive Services

Pathway

Job Ready Pathway

>7.0 TABE

>6 Months consecutive work

experience

Group 1: No credentials

Group 2: GED and/or

vocational credential

<7.0 TABE

<6 Months consecutive work

experience

Candidate

Pool/Job

Search

Job Bank

Industry

Sectors

Service

Industries

Manufacturing

Construction

Transportation/

Warehousing/

Logistics

Other Sector

Strategies

Retention

Groups

Job Readiness

Training If <1 yr of

work

Career

Planning

WorkshopsIf>1 yr of

work

On the Job

Groups If in

Transitional

Employment

Make needed referrals; monitor

services to meet required

thresholdsRefer to Pathway

Mental Health

Substance Abuse

Career Scope

BESI

Services heavily front-end

loaded towards retention

Preparing for Employment Finding Employment Keeping Employment

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POLICY SAFER’S WORK

Safer bases its interest in and commitment to this area of work on the

recognition that a variety of policy and legislative obstacles exist that

obstruct the successful return of people with criminal records to their

communities. Policies such as these may unwittingly encourage

recidivism and reduce opportunities for self-sufficiency.

Safer’s overarching advocacy goals are to:

Increase community awareness of the barriers faced by PCRs

Build a broad based coalition to work towards eliminating and/or

reducing barriers, and

Provide a voice and vehicle for participation by the people most

impacted by these policies.

Council of Advisors to Reduce Recidivism through Employment

(CARRE): A collaboration of individuals and organizations that focuses on

the removal/reduction of systemic barriers to employment.

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POLICY PARTNERSHIPS AND COLLABORATIONS

CHICAGO-BASED

Illinois Partners for Human Services

Sentencing Policy Advisory Council

Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law

League of Women Voters of Illinois

Community Renewal Society

NON CHICAGO-BASED

National Employment Law Network (NELP)

National HIRE Network

Council of State Government/National

Reentry Resource Center

Brennan Center for Justice

Leadership Conference on Civil

and Human Rights

Morgan-Lewis Law Firm

Cabrini Green Legal Aid

John Howard Association

Illinois Justice Project

Chicago Jobs Council

Open Society Institute

The Sentencing Project

Legal Action Center

Prison Fellowship

Brennan Center for Justice

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POLICY Eliminating Barriers to Employment

Certificates of Rehabilitation: Certificates of rehabilitation lift statutory bars to jobs, licenses or

other necessities such as employment that result from a conviction history. Certificates may be

used to provide a way for qualified people with criminal records to demonstrate

rehabilitation/commitment to rehabilitation. They are an essential resource that supports reentry and

promotes public safety.

Ban the Box State of Illinois: Effective January 1, 2015, this law requires that private employers

with more than 15 employees remove the criminal conviction question from their employment

applications. Employers may not inquire as to an applicant's criminal record prior to the initial

interview.

Ban the Box City of Chicago: Effective January 1, 2015, this law requires that all employers

remove the criminal conviction question from their employment applications. Employers may not

inquire as to an applicant's criminal record prior to the initial interview.

Sealing Expansion: Effective January 1, 2016, Allows a person who earned a high school

diploma, associate's degree, career certificate, vocational technical certification, or bachelor's

degree, or passed the high school level Test of General Educational Development, during the

period of his or her sentence, aftercare release, or mandatory supervised release, to petition for

sealing of eligible offenses before expiration of applicable waiting periods under the sealing law

(currently 3 years in the state of Illinois).

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POLICY Available Assistance for Criminal Records Relief

Cabrini Green Legal Aid: 3.9 million men and women in Illinois have a criminal record. There are many forms of

relief available in our state, and CGLA is the premier legal agency helping people with

records obtain a second chance.

Criminal Records Program:

CGLA assists individuals in clearing their arrest and conviction records through a range

of legal remedies, including expungement, sealing, clemency, health care waivers,

certificates of good conduct, and certificates of relief from disability. The program

includes our Help Desks at the Daley Center and the Markham Courthouse, our

Criminal Records Corps of trained law students who bring these services to clients of

homeless agencies, and individual advice and representation by staff and volunteer

attorneys, including for clients of workforce development agencies and other partner

organizations that serve people who face these barriers.

CGLA is able to represent individuals who live in the city of Chicago with a household

income less than 150% of the federal poverty guidelines and have a legal problem in

one of our areas of practice.

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HEALTHCARE FORUM

• On Thursday, May 7, 2015 Safer Foundation President

and CEO Victor Dickson and Congressman Danny

Davis co-hosted a successful landmark Healthcare

Forum, "Innovative Workforce Development Initiatives:

Utilizing an Untapped Workforce to Build Stronger

Communities.“

• The Forum brought together 30 healthcare executives

responsible for or involved in hiring decisions.

• Pamela Paulk - President of Johns Hopkins

Medicine International and a 2014 White House

Champion of Change - delivered the keynote address

on Hopkins’ successful program hiring people with

criminal records.

• Safer made a presentation to healthcare leaders on

pilots offering persons with criminal records

employment.

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OPENING THE DOORS TO

OPPORTUNITY IN HEALTHCARE

The forum was a first step in facilitating increased hiring of

individuals with criminal backgrounds by healthcare employers in

the Chicago-area.

Ten healthcare organizations including hospitals, hospital

networks and community health centers, expressed interest

in working collaboratively to increase hiring of people with

criminal records!