Blog Post: Times are getting tuff for ex-offenders

As the job market tightens, those who have been in the upper strata of the employment pyramid begin to look at jobs below what they would usually take. If a man is working for $15 per hour in the IT industry and cant, find work after a long time he is most likely going to start looking for any job including jobs that pay less or are not in his field. He may even take a job as a store clerk for $9 per hour just to make ends meet.

What does this mean for the ex-offender? Well, jobs that have traditionally been available for ex-offenders start to shrink as the upper strata of job seekers begin to accept the worsening economy and take jobs that were once a staple for ex-offenders.

This usually means that ex-offenders are left largely unemployed or severely underemployed. As employers have a larger pool of qualified candidates.

There is an answer to this dilemma! It is not necessarily a forgone conclusion that ex-offenders must accept unemployment in a job-starved economy.

The first thing that must be done is to take very seriously how you market yourself. You must have all of your information and tools together. There are ways you can do this. You can become involved in a workforce development program that educates ex-offenders on how to seek employment. Programs like TEaMS (Transitional Employment and Mentoring Services) www.teamsaz.org , My Brothers Keeper, www.mbklifeline.com and Arizona Women’s Education and Employment www.awee.org   all have ex-offender employment programs to fit different needs. Their have been many studies that have shown that when a third party is involved in the employment process for ex-offenders the chances of gaining employment greatly increase.

You can also find many books on employment of ex-offenders such as Prison to Paycheck, www.prisontopaycheck.com  that will give you great information on how to better approach employers.

The next step is to start getting your network together. It is true! More jobs are gained thru networking than thru any other means. In a tuff economy, your network will help where no other source will. When the want ads are empty and the unemployment office does not have the jobs, your network can make the difference.

Ask friends and relatives about employment opportunities they may have encountered. Start a file of 5x10 cards for each contact you have and check back with them frequently. Just because they have not encountered a job opportunity today does not mean that they will not a week from now.

Expand your network. Attend local job fairs get the names or recruiters and their phone numbers call them back from time to time. Look in the yellow pages and find service groups like The Kiwanis or The Rotary ask if you can attend the local meetings and bring resumes. These organizations will most likely be a great source of employment opportunities.

One more thing may help; come to a meeting of the Community Reintegration Coalition. We are a group of many organizations that have come together to help ex-offenders to find work. Our members represent dozens of organizations in Maricopa County that have resources to help you find work. Get involved in the CRC and you may find opportunities to help each other. We meet the second Thursday of each month. You can get directions and find out more by going to our website at www.azcrc.com . Go to the calendar tab and click on the date of the meeting for directions.

I look forward to seeing you there and perhaps talking about how we can overcome the

current problem we are all facing.

Steven B. Temple GCDF

President

Community Reintegration Coalition.

© Steve Temple

www.teamsaz.org