NEED HELP FINDING WORK WITH A FELONYI was railroaded and received a felony charge for a crime I did not commit (it does happen). The charge was in 2001, non-violent. Since,I have worked some government and corporate jobs, the market is really tight now. I have not worked since Jan. of this year do to the felony. I work in IT & have years of experience. There really should be a law if that if you completed your time, the record should be removed from your record and can' t be used against you unless you commit another crime. With being a black male, it is extremely hard. Also the business of credit check should not be used either. Your credit does not determine your job ability. If you' ve been laid off or had hard times, sometimes your credit is affected. Anyways, anyone knows of a company in Virginia, prefer northern VA, DC Metro, Richmond,Tidewater areas; that will overlook the felony record. I have proven myself with work and my job performance. How do people expect over600K people every year that is released with a felony charge to get a job? I just want fair pay for my work, not be rail-roaded just because I have a felony. Fast foods, department stores, and other small businesses will not hire you as well. I' ve always been honest &upfront about my record. But that just leads to be denied faster. Due to health reasons, I can not do labor work (construction) or want to drive a tractor trailer. Nothing against the people for that type of work, but its not for me. We all should not have to be regulated to the same type of work. The employment agencies don' t help and people in government will not change the laws. Wonder how they would feel i fit was their child or a family member caught up with a felony charge(maybe themselves too) and have to grind it out, ask for help, to make a living. I just want some help. Anyone with reliable suggestions? And please, no evil comments. Lets have some maturity here. Thanks. While most of us probably haven' t shared your experience, I' m sure we can empathize with the effects of your situation, and certainly the difficulties in finding work for whichever reasons. I' m sorry I don' t know of any companies in your area, but You didn' t necessarily say it was what you wanted to get back into, and I' m not sure of your particular area of IT expertise, but I wonder if you might encounter less resistance by starting your own IT consulting business. With the lack of need for inventory and little in terms of physical space requirements, it would seem you could get it started with minimal capital. I know it' s not what you were asking about, but just came to me as maybe an easier path while reading your story. I am in the same boat....... I also have a felony (8ys ago) and no one will give me a second chance. I feel the same way as you. I paid my debt to society. I went to prison for almost 3 yrs. My first offense. I never even had so much as a speeding ticket. Just a lousy lawyer. I worked for a Juvenile Court for almost 22 yrs. and I had to resign. and now, 8 yrs. later I am about to lose everything I own. My house, car, live savings. EVERYTHING. because of one stupid human error. I hope employers also read this and think about it. What if something stupid happened to them or someone in their family. I am at my wits end and about to end it all. I wish someone could help me!!!!!!!! I have no advise, just wanted to share. Maybe someone out there has some advise for me!! I want to say that I have tried to run a small computer tech support/services on my own. Problem is that the level of understanding of how much services cost and their willing to pay has been a difficult issue. Although I charge WAY LESS than Best Buy' s Geek Squad (they actually do very poor service), it has not been easy. Yes, I have done the friend/family route of word of mouth and advertising is costly. You are not allowed to run around just post flyers anywhere anymore w/o getting in trouble. But I have not quit. I understand what you are going through. I have lost a lot of the same things and its just been rough. But I beg of you not to end it all and/or give up. I honestly don' t know of an answer at this moment. In VA, it is very hard. People a ways want to say just move, but it is not that simple. The record still is there and you can' t just go change your SS#, fingerprints, and name all that easy. But just please hang in there. Praying is all that is keeping me there. Have to ask. Was the felony job-related or was it completely separate from your job? This could have some bearing on how employers will see this. It was completely separate from my job. I have explained this to employers, letting them know that they shouldn' t use this as a basis of employment. After someone completes their probation period, a person shouldn' t have the felony on your record anymore, that' s just it. They claim you pay your debt to the world, but the world still wants to make the person suffer. Is there a social service network in your community? If so contact the agency. Ask if there are any groups that support people with felony records. There are often groups that help with placement into decent job situations. Also think about contacting some of the local faith based organizations. People are often surprised to learn that many churches have well developed networks. My son has a felony record and he used the social service route to assist in finding employment until his record could be cleaned up. Hang in there. You will find someone that will look past the felony charge. | |
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