Target initiates ban the box nationwide
In an overflow meeting at the Capri Theater, executives with Target Corporation engaged in a dialog about how corporate hiring policies prevent people with criminal arrest – disproportionately people of color – from securing a job.
The community meeting was organized by TakeAction Minnesota through its Justice 4 All, fair hiring campaign.
Jim Rowader, Target’s vice president of employee and labor relations, announced during the meeting that the company would institute a nationwide ban on the checkbox included on employment applications that screens for an applicant’s past criminal history. Officials with TakeAction said the move is a significant step in removing a key employment barrier for those with arrest records from one of the nation’s largest employers.
“Ending racism in employment demands the leadership of Minneapolis’ Northside community,” said TakeAction Minnesota’s executive director, Dan McGrath. “No matter their credentials and work ethic, the fact is that there are structural barriers in place that stop people from getting jobs. Our Justice 4 All campaign was launched by leaders from this community so that no one who has been locked up is locked out of a job and a positive future.”
McGrath said TakeAction Minnesota has worked for more than two years to build a base of leadership on the Northside to address inequities in employment…
