Shianne was looking for a job over a year when she found Honest Jobs. Her barrier? A theft charge from 10 years ago. Fortunately, she didn't give up and she found a job via the Honest Jobs platform in just 1-1.5 months. As she said: "You'll eventually get a yes and Honest Jobs is where you get that." Hear her story in the video below:
Interview Transcript:
What was your experience with the criminal justice system before you found Honest Jobs?
Shianne: “My charge was possession of a forged instrument in the third. I didn't serve any jail time. I was released on ROR. But it's just been hard for me to get a job because they do the background check and once the stealing comes up, they don't want to hire me. So it's been very difficult. I would have the interview, they'd be like: "Oh, well you're a good fit. We just have to run the background check.” And then once the background check came back, they'd say: "Oh, unfortunately we can't hire you.""
What was your experience looking for a job after you found Honest Jobs?
Shianne: "As soon as I came to Honest Jobs, I'd say I had an interview and acceptance within a month. So, Honest Jobs is really, really helping."
Tell us about your new job!
Shianne: "I got hired at GAP. The pay is $18/hr, overtime is $26/hr. I have health benefits, dental benefits, paid vacation time, and paid sick days."
Would you recommend Honest Jobs to other formerly incarcerated job seekers?
Shianne: "Yes, I definitely would. It's a very good website [and] it doesn't take long to find employment. It's very easy to find on Google and they have all the jobs near you. The employers apply fair-chance hiring. [Honest Jobs is] very easy to contact. They give you phone numbers, they text you. It's just a very easy platform to access and it's very useful."
Do you have a message to job seekers?
Shianne: "My advice just to never give up. I was on the edge of giving up, but then I found Honest Jobs. There are so many people that will say no, but it just takes the right time and the right effort to get that one person to say yes. So my advice is just to never give up. Even if you keep getting no after, no, you'll eventually get a yes and Honest Jobs is where you get that."
Do you have a message to employers?
Shianne: "My advice for employers would just to not judge somebody so fast off of their record. You know, just sit down with them, have them explain why they did what they did. How old they were, how many years it has been since what they've done to change, and just go based off of that. Not everybody is the same as they were 10 years ago. In my case, my charge was 10 years ago and I'm still having trouble.”
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