My friend starts her job today, after learning to program in prison

Post by schoolornot » Thu, Oct 01, 2020, 4:15 PM UTC

caseyscottmckay wrote: post #8

We need more of this. A criminal record in the US is a curse for life, leaving former criminals with little chance at success and little to live for. People without much to live for are dangerous. We should help our former criminals rather than condemn them for life--it benefits us all.

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Oct 01, 2020, 4:16 PM UTC

staticassertion wrote: post #20

nickff wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People are losing their jobs because of offhand tweets completely unrelated to their occupation; how can we expect that a blemish as big as a criminal record will be overlooked?

I'd rather hire a criminal (depending on the crime, obviously) than, say, a racist, especially given how many laws I disagree with.

Post by secondcoming » Thu, Oct 01, 2020, 4:16 PM UTC

staticassertion wrote: post #20

nickff wrote: post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

People are losing their jobs because of offhand tweets completely unrelated to their occupation; how can we expect that a blemish as big as a criminal record will be overlooked?

I'd rather hire a criminal (depending on the crime, obviously) than, say, a racist, especially given how many laws I disagree with.

Post by ciarannolan » Thu, Oct 01, 2020, 4:16 PM UTC

frakt0x90 wrote: post #15

ciarannolan wrote: post #7

tldr: "I reached out to a friend who is Head of Engineering at a ~500 person fintech company."

I mean yeah in this particular case, but the broader point still stands that prison needs to be less of a career death sentence and employers should open up to the idea of hiring former prisoners. And that there needs to be substantial reform for the prison system and that you should join a support group similar to hers to help these people out.

Post by ansible » Thu, Oct 01, 2020, 4:17 PM UTC

thelean12 wrote: post #14

There are a lot of people saying they're in favor of this type of thing. And for non-violent offenses I'd probably also be on board. But this person committed a "serious, violent crime" that sent them to prison for 13 years. Are you comfortable sitting next to someone who is capable of a "serious, violent crime"? Are there certain crimes that cross the line for you? Would you expect your employer to inform you of the…