Background
On January 1, 2018, the California Fair Chance Act, also known as the Ban the Box law, was enacted to address the issue of employment discrimination against individuals with criminal records. The law came into effect to give applicants with criminal histories a fair chance to compete for jobs by allowing them to be evaluated based on their qualifications and skills before their criminal history is taken into consideration.
The act is applicable for any employee that will work at least eight (8) hours per week in Long Beach, including temporary, seasonal, part-time, contract, contingent, and commision-based work
While employers are to refrain from inquiring about arrests or conviction records, there are other offenses or infractions that still apply under the same act. Applicants have several privacy rights prior to being offered a job position, some of which are listed below.
The City of Long Beach (City) believes in fairness and equal opportunity for all job seekers, regardless of their past convictions. To ensure the City is complying with the requirements of the California Fair Chance Act, the Department of Human Resources works diligently to regularly assess current processes and identify areas of opportunity for improvement. For an overview of Fair Chance Hiring Prohibitions please see chart below.
Resources
