
Brooks: It in no way tramples on employers rights. This law in no way circumscribes, limits, suppresses the discretion of employers to find the best people they can. The only thing this law does, is postpone when the question is asked about a persons criminal background. Not if.
YR: Your organization is now working to pass statewide Ban the Box legislation. Would that make New Jersey less competitive in terms of attracting business?
Brooks: Massachusetts, Hawaii, Colorado and New Mexico and counties and cities all across the country have a ban the box law and we’re not hearing from mayors or governors saying they’ve had businesses fleeing their jurisdictions as a consequence of this law. Governors and mayors and CEO’s have lived with and under this law, and have been able to ensure the shareholders value, satisfy customers, and make a payroll. There is nothing in this law that is, in anyway, anti-competitive, and it will not, in any way, disadvantage the state of New Jersey.
YR: Why is Ban the Box important?
Brooks: If you believe in fairness. If you believe in the American worker, then you have to believe in policies that promote the opportunity for people to compete for work. Why should a person spend 2 or 3 years behind bars for a drug possession or a drug distribution charge then spend the rest of their lives, based on one offense, being less able to compete for work?
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