Donna is thrilled that there are still companies out there who will listen to her story and recognize that she is a valuable person with great qualifications, regardless of her past. Learn more about Donna's experience with Honest Jobs in the video below:
Interview Transcript:
What experience do you have with the criminal justice system?
Donna: “So it's been about 10 years in and out of jail. I have mental illness. The charges are all misdemeanors. I don't have any felonies.”
What was your experience looking for a job before you found Honest Jobs?
Donna: “Mostly, I was looking at Indeed.com and what I found before was a lot of people will run your background check and they'll be like, “Oh no, there are too many things on here and we're just not even gonna give her a chance.” You know, I've been very discouraged before in the past because there was another company who wanted to get me on board and I had to pass the background check. I didn't pass the background check and they didn't allow me to explain myself.”
Tell us about your new job!
Donna: “I'm working at Whole Foods Market and my title is a Team Member - Cashier. I'm making $16 an hour. They really invest a lot in their employees and I just think it's a wonderful company. I’m fine now. Finally, I'm stable. My mental health is wonderful. I've got a great apartment. Everything's going so great now, and I wanna keep that for a while. But yeah, I'm very hopeful for my future.”
Would you recommend Honest Jobs to other formerly incarcerated job seekers?
Donna: “Absolutely, because it's an easy tool to use. You can see right there that they have a certain amount of people who have been actually hired by the company. And I just think it's great because it's a site where you can go and you're not thinking, “Oh no, I've got a background. How am I gonna get a job?” You know that these companies are giving these people a second chance. And you can feel assured that you can have that ability as well to get a chance. I would definitely recommend Honest Jobs to any job seeker, especially those who have a criminal background. So thank you for being what you are."
Do you have a message to employers?
Donna: “Yeah, absolutely. For those who are looking to hire people, it's just that, maybe it was a certain time in their life where they were having some struggles and they ended up getting a criminal charge. That doesn't mean that that’s a criminal person. There might just be certain areas in their life where they were struggling. That was with me and I was struggling for quite some time. But, you know, I am a good person and there are great job seekers out there that deserve a second chance or deserve a chance just to show you that they can be an excellent asset to your company.”
Join Honest Jobs
If you're an employer who believes in second chances, or a person who needs one, head to www.HonestJobs.com to create more experiences like Donna's.
Comentarios