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Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a ....

Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have ......

  • Only employers should be banned from asking about any criminal history

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Landlords should be allowed to ask about crimes that are "significantly related"

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • I do not know.

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    39
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

I think that both employers and landlords should be allowed to ask about crimes that are relevant. For example if you were convicted of insider trading, I wouldn't hire you as a stock trader. If you robbed a bank, you probably shouldn't be working at one. If you were in jail because you were running a meth lab, I sure as hell would want to know that before I rented you an apartment.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Criminal history is important. Things like the type of crime, when it was committed, and how frequently crimes were committed is pretty pertinent to whether or not I want that person in my office or home.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

I don't give a fig if someone has committed a crime in the past. Last summer, I had a kid stay with me for 4 months. The police know me- I helped them out on one of their cases. So they suggested that I help this kid out over the summer, help him find a summer job. I never asked what he did- that's his business. I don't have a crapload of money in my place. I don't see why anyone rich enough to have crap that they value that much needs to have tenants. I got payed $60 a month for this kid, 1$ a day. I got him his job the first day, receptionist at the local copy place. He payed for his own meals, his own recreation- he brought some friends over, he knew if he did anything illegal while I was around or let me find out he was doing anything he'd be back at the police before he had a chance to explain. Your past doesn't define you- it's your present. I've done that 5 times for kids, brought 'em in and found a job for them, given them a chance to learn that the real world isn't really out to get you if you find help. I've never had anything stolen, they always left with plans for a job and an apartment so they could start finding they're own way in the world. People are only as mean and bitchy as you make them...if you treat them like adults and you give them the assumption they can get their sh*t together, they usually do. It's the people who judge or scorn you because of some stupid thing you did 5, 10 years ago that make kids these days mean and angry. Learn to deal with your biases...if you get in trouble, someday you'll wish more people out there who offered that.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a criminal record/past?


Employers and landlords should not be banned from asking about any criminal history.

Employees and landlords should be banned from asking about any criminal history.

Only employers should be banned from asking about any criminal history.

Only landlords should be banned from asking about any criminal history.


Employers should be allowed to ask about crimes are "significantly related".For example a bank asking if the applicant if they been convicted of armed robbery, theft or embezzlement or a Daycare asking the applicant if they have been convicted of child molestation,rape or abuse.

Landlords should be allowed to ask about crimes that are "significantly related".For example a landlord asking the applicant if they are a convicted sex offender or if they have been convicted of making meth.

Both should be allowed to ask about crimes that are "significantly related.

I do not know.





I think limiting an employer or landlord to what questions they can ask is the best solution. This still allowed employers and landlords to weed out potential threats while at the same time preventing someone who was convicted of a unrelated offense from being discriminated against.

I'll ask my applicants if they would like to voluntarily submit to a criminal back-round check. Those that don't will receive a polite, professional letter in the mail telling them I've declined their application, and I won't even state why. Those that do submit and have criminal convictions, that's a fact-dependent judgement call I will make on a case by case basis.

As a contractor I advise homeowners to only use contractors who perform criminal checks. It's also perfectly within the homeowner's rights to request that no one with various convictions be sent to work on their home.
 
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Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

It varies from state-to-state, and sometimes even county-to-county. I couldn't say for sure that there's not a national database. I know I have had access to one, but that was about ten years ago and I honestly can't remember the specifics.

When my X started playing her games, all I had was a land-line that she called me from once when her cell died, to go on. 1 hour later I had the address, history of that property going back 70 years, criminal backgrounds on everyone who listed that address as their home, their place of work, license plate numbers.....all kinds of information.

And it was all legally acquired. 100% above board. I was ready for them to sue me for stalking or something when they eventually found out so I was sure to keep my credit-card receipts and screenshots of the various site I used. So, yeah, if I'm asking you give me your criminal history, you don't actually have a choice, I'm just phrasing it in the form of a question to be polite.
 
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Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

If laws are important enough to receive government action, prosection, and conviction on, they are important enough for me to be aware of. Up to me if it's relevant.

As someone else noted, you could also have a third party do the legal evaluation and just give red or green light, so history is preserved. Costs money though, let me guess who pays....
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

If laws are important enough to receive government action, prosection, and conviction on, they are important enough for me to be aware of. Up to me if it's relevant.

As someone else noted, you could also have a third party do the legal evaluation and just give red or green light, so history is preserved. Costs money though, let me guess who pays....

The tenant pays either way, because fees related to renting the place out are business expenses for the LLC that property belongs to, and are figured into the rent.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

for many, many employers that would be an automatic disqualification. i don't know what the answer is, but ex-cons need to have jobs.

Let them work for the government, its full of crooks.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Landlords should mind they own. As long they getting paid why worry over it:lol:

Because the last thing I want is someone who is a convicted criminal (especially sex offender) living in the building where my daughters are also living...
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Because the last thing I want is someone who is a convicted criminal (especially sex offender) living in the building where my daughters are also living...

If you keep the sex offenders busy, they won't give a f*ck about your daughters since they can go get more legitimate fun. The more you antagonize them, the more likely they are to retaliate by raping. It gives them a sense of control over their lives when you deny them it. If you give them a job, encourage them to spend their money in ways that make them happy with life, and generally give them ways they can regain their own sense of control over their destiny, I don't think you will see them raping too many women. But then again- that would require actually spending your time and efforts to help them, and unfortunately not too many people are willing to do that. We're so scared that their past will define their future, we never give them an opportunity to change.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

In my opinion Employers and Landlords have every right to do a background check on potential employees and renters...they are entitled to protect their business and property
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

In my opinion Employers and Landlords have every right to do a background check on potential employees and renters...they are entitled to protect their business and property

Do they also have a right to look into their medical history, into their friendship circle, and into their daily habits? Everything a person does can effect their employment and what they do in the place they live in. Checking their criminal history to see if they have ever committed a crime is no different from checking their medical history to see if they have a history of drunkards...it's just as likely to affect their current life practices, and I find it just as ridiculous. Peoples' past habits do not define their present actions. The sooner we as a people figure that out and stop judging people based on mistakes they made previous, the better.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

If you keep the sex offenders busy, they won't give a f*ck about your daughters since they can go get more legitimate fun. The more you antagonize them, the more likely they are to retaliate by raping. It gives them a sense of control over their lives when you deny them it. If you give them a job, encourage them to spend their money in ways that make them happy with life, and generally give them ways they can regain their own sense of control over their destiny, I don't think you will see them raping too many women. But then again- that would require actually spending your time and efforts to help them, and unfortunately not too many people are willing to do that. We're so scared that their past will define their future, we never give them an opportunity to change.

I'm sorry, but you obviously know nothing about pedophiles or serial rapists. Keeping them "busy" doesn't satisfy the urges they develop to do the things they do. That's why they're SERIAL.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

I'm sorry, but you obviously know nothing about pedophiles or serial rapists. Keeping them "busy" doesn't satisfy the urges they develop to do the things they do. That's why they're SERIAL.

Pedophiles and serial rapists are entirely different, for one thing. Serial rapists are in jail- it's a life sentence. So they must have been acquitted, in which case as far as I'm concerned they didn't do it. There's a lot of work right now in the legal fields towards getting the pedophile sentence extended to life as well, which seems logical to me. But from my experience, many "sex offenders" committed maybe one, two rapes, faced a ton of jail time and a fee and suffered for their illegal decisions, and are now released to the general public, if not guilty over what they did at least aware of what the result is of doing it again. Also, I am not strongly against a sex offender registry. I am also not against personality tests- if someone tests in as a kleptomaniac, I can understand not wanting them in your house. Again, I have no problem with them being in mine because I honestly don't give a sh*t if they take anything, but I can understand other people being more attached to their belongings. I think it's reasonable to want to know the personality of the person, since they might be a party person when you like a quiet house, or an pet-lover when you don't like animals. In those cases I can understand advising the person not to come based on limitations you put on your tenants. But if they just stole something, or did some other petty crime years back and served their sentence, I think it's unfair for people to judge them based on that. The employers or landlords shouldn't be able to see what they did, but rather, using the personality tests, they can decide what the risk is of them doing something in the future, and based on that make their decision. Once again, I am not strongly against sex offender directories- you are correct that there are people whose urges won't be satisfied without illegal activity, and who can't resist those urges forever, and in those cases I am sorry for those people. But that is a small sex offenders, an even smaller percent of people, and I don't think that that alone merits a criminal record check.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

If I am hiring someone, or renting an apartment out to them, I have the right to know if they have engaged in criminal activity. What would even qualify as an unrelated offence?
In other words, "once a criminal. always a criminal."
So define "criminal".
This is quite the problem, and I see no solution.
We do need a better people - in all areas.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Pedophiles and serial rapists are entirely different, for one thing. Serial rapists are in jail- it's a life sentence. So they must have been acquitted, in which case as far as I'm concerned they didn't do it. There's a lot of work right now in the legal fields towards getting the pedophile sentence extended to life as well, which seems logical to me. But from my experience, many "sex offenders" committed maybe one, two rapes, faced a ton of jail time and a fee and suffered for their illegal decisions, and are now released to the general public, if not guilty over what they did at least aware of what the result is of doing it again. Also, I am not strongly against a sex offender registry. I am also not against personality tests- if someone tests in as a kleptomaniac, I can understand not wanting them in your house. Again, I have no problem with them being in mine because I honestly don't give a sh*t if they take anything, but I can understand other people being more attached to their belongings. I think it's reasonable to want to know the personality of the person, since they might be a party person when you like a quiet house, or an pet-lover when you don't like animals. In those cases I can understand advising the person not to come based on limitations you put on your tenants. But if they just stole something, or did some other petty crime years back and served their sentence, I think it's unfair for people to judge them based on that. The employers or landlords shouldn't be able to see what they did, but rather, using the personality tests, they can decide what the risk is of them doing something in the future, and based on that make their decision. Once again, I am not strongly against sex offender directories- you are correct that there are people whose urges won't be satisfied without illegal activity, and who can't resist those urges forever, and in those cases I am sorry for those people. But that is a small sex offenders, an even smaller percent of people, and I don't think that that alone merits a criminal record check.

I'm sorry, that's ridiculous. They may be trying to extend the MAXIMUM sentence to life, but that doesn't mean they'll get it, or that they won't be paroled. What a silly argument.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

I'm sorry, that's ridiculous. They may be trying to extend the MAXIMUM sentence to life, but that doesn't mean they'll get it, or that they won't be paroled. What a silly argument.

Thanks giving it such excellent criticism...I'm glad to know that the end of the day, people like you will be there to tell me I have silly arguments. Getting to the actual point, I actually realize that. I don't know if you noticed, but that's why I said having a combination of a sex offender directory and a personality test. My point is that you shouldn't just classify them as sex offenders for the rest of their life, that fact shouldn't limit everything they can do anymore than a love of pornographic material or violent movies. Addictions might limit their social abilities or force them to go to some kind of rehab to regain control over their lives, but it doesn't give you or me the right to judge them for it. I understand if you don't want to have someone whose personality test shows that they have a strong chance of going out on a raping quest in a week- I just don't understand why because they've had sex with a child in the past you immediately assume they can't control themselves enough not to do it again. They serve their punishment, the state deems them ready to go- and I won't argue with it. They're the ones with Ph.D's in criminal psychology, not me.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Thanks giving it such excellent criticism...I'm glad to know that the end of the day, people like you will be there to tell me I have silly arguments. Getting to the actual point, I actually realize that. I don't know if you noticed, but that's why I said having a combination of a sex offender directory and a personality test. My point is that you shouldn't just classify them as sex offenders for the rest of their life, that fact shouldn't limit everything they can do anymore than a love of pornographic material or violent movies. Addictions might limit their social abilities or force them to go to some kind of rehab to regain control over their lives, but it doesn't give you or me the right to judge them for it. I understand if you don't want to have someone whose personality test shows that they have a strong chance of going out on a raping quest in a week- I just don't understand why because they've had sex with a child in the past you immediately assume they can't control themselves enough not to do it again. They serve their punishment, the state deems them ready to go- and I won't argue with it. They're the ones with Ph.D's in criminal psychology, not me.

*shrugs* Can't win 'em all, I guess. Glad to know you'll be the one employing/housing them so I don't have make that complicated, difficult, and risky decision on a recently released convict.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Do they also have a right to look into their medical history, into their friendship circle, and into their daily habits? Everything a person does can effect their employment and what they do in the place they live in. Checking their criminal history to see if they have ever committed a crime is no different from checking their medical history to see if they have a history of drunkards...it's just as likely to affect their current life practices, and I find it just as ridiculous. Peoples' past habits do not define their present actions. The sooner we as a people figure that out and stop judging people based on mistakes they made previous, the better.


No and I didnt say they did...but they do have every right to do a criminal back ground check and a credit check
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

*shrugs* Can't win 'em all, I guess. Glad to know you'll be the one employing/housing them so I don't have make that complicated, difficult, and risky decision on a recently released convict.
Yep, I guess so. If I stop responding suddenly in about a month, it means the latest kid I'm taking in raped me then killed me in my sleep, and you're proven correct.

No and I didnt say they did...but they do have every right to do a criminal back ground check and a credit check

A credit check? So now we're checking to see if they even spend correctly? What are you going to do next, investigate their dating background and give them a blood test for terminal diseases? I don't see where the line is here. It seems like people can just keep getting more and more personal. What makes what you're doing right and checking for race, gender, or musical preference wrong? I'm not saying you can't go to the police and ask for a criminal record check...I'm just saying that I should have the right to say that you can't have it. If you deny me based on that ground then whatever, I don't care- it's your loss of business, I can just go to a different place that does let me in.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Yep, I guess so. If I stop responding suddenly in about a month, it means the latest kid I'm taking in raped me then killed me in my sleep, and you're proven correct.



A credit check? So now we're checking to see if they even spend correctly? What are you going to do next, investigate their dating background and give them a blood test for terminal diseases? I don't see where the line is here. It seems like people can just keep getting more and more personal. What makes what you're doing right and checking for race, gender, or musical preference wrong? I'm not saying you can't go to the police and ask for a criminal record check...I'm just saying that I should have the right to say that you can't have it. If you deny me based on that ground then whatever, I don't care- it's your loss of business, I can just go to a different place that does let me in.

Belgrath you seem to have an emotional problem over this....I gave you my opinion and you want to make wild assumptions about what I meant....now im going to try this just once more ok

An employer and a landlord who may be responsible for other tenants in the building have every right to know the criminal history of those they are dealing with. They have every right to check their credit history for employers because individuals with bad credit are proven to be more of a loss risk than those with good credit...a landlord has the right to know a prospective tenants credit history to see if they have been evicted from other residences for not paying etc....
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Do they also have a right to look into their medical history, into their friendship circle, and into their daily habits?

When I applied to work for Pete Lien and Sons in SD, they didn't just do a medical history, you had to get a physical. You were not allowed to smoke while employed with them, even on your own time, and yes they did ask about tattoos, piercings, drinking, and other things a such are markers of certain character types which are prone to irresponsible behavior.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Belgrath you seem to have an emotional problem over this....I gave you my opinion and you want to make wild assumptions about what I meant....now im going to try this just once more ok

An employer and a landlord who may be responsible for other tenants in the building have every right to know the criminal history of those they are dealing with. They have every right to check their credit history for employers because individuals with bad credit are proven to be more of a loss risk than those with good credit...a landlord has the right to know a prospective tenants credit history to see if they have been evicted from other residences for not paying etc....

On credit rating, my personal goal is to have no FICO score (not a score of "0", but no score at all), and then freeze my credit history. At that time, should you look, you will not see a good or bad score, you see that I have no score at all.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

Belgrath you seem to have an emotional problem over this....I gave you my opinion and you want to make wild assumptions about what I meant....now im going to try this just once more ok

An employer and a landlord who may be responsible for other tenants in the building have every right to know the criminal history of those they are dealing with. They have every right to check their credit history for employers because individuals with bad credit are proven to be more of a loss risk than those with good credit...a landlord has the right to know a prospective tenants credit history to see if they have been evicted from other residences for not paying etc....
I have not yet made any wild assumptions, and I don't have an emotional problem regarding this. I will repeat, I have no problem with you making the checks- I just have a problem with not having control over my own record. For the sake of the argument, pretend that I committed a theft 10 years ago. I was caught. I served my time, and I'm ready to deal with the real world again. The last thing I need is everyone denying me tenancy because of that mistake 10 years ago. I want to restrict access to my criminal record so people deal with me as I am now, not then. I don't care if you deny me residence based on my refusal to release my record- I just have a problem with you having unrestricted access to my record. With all those other matters, it's the same thing- I don't care if you deny me residence for refusing to release what I've done, but I do have a problem with not being able to block you from having access to that material.

When I applied to work for Pete Lien and Sons in SD, they didn't just do a medical history, you had to get a physical. You were not allowed to smoke while employed with them, even on your own time, and yes they did ask about tattoos, piercings, drinking, and other things a such are markers of certain character types which are prone to irresponsible behavior.

I have no problem with them having those restrictions. All that is fine with me. At the place where I'm working, they have a criminal record check and I let them do it. I have nothing to hide. I thought it was stupid, and I still do- I can do my job just as well whether I stole something 10 years ago or not. A personality test would have revealed flawed character aspects without invading your personality history. My business is my own, and as long as it doesn't interfere with my work I don't see why you get to poke around in it and decide if it suits you. Last summer, I had to apply for 4 apartment complexes before I found one where they didn't check about your previous living, because where I was living 4 years ago I couldn't pay for the rent because I got laid off for no fault of my own. I'm not interested in getting rejected for my living space because of something I had no control over, and I freely admit that. You can take me for who I am now, or I'll take my business elsewhere. I think if more of the world operated that way we would have significantly less crime, because we'd stop denying everyone who's passed time in a jail cell a home, and then they would have less inspiration to do stupid things because they'd actually have something they value that doesn't get taken away from them by judgmental people. Please note: I haven't even been to court, let alone convicted of a crime. I just hate people who judge those who've made mistakes in the past, and say "once a criminal, always a criminal". That's never been true and never will be, and that attitude is part of our criminal probem today.
 
Re: Should employers & landlords be prohibited from asking applicants if they have a

If you are walking around free to take a job or rent a home, then your criminal history is nobody's business but yours. Your debt to society is paid when your sentence ends. Other than sex offenders, who would be monitored on release, and their names held on a register for employers to check.
 
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