Employers and the Reintegration of Formerly Incarcerated Persons

Abstract

In this initial submission, I argue for the importance of management researchers pursuing scholarly inquiry and research on the topic of employer reintegration of the formerly incarcerated. Around the world, there is growing political and social interest in criminal justice reform and rising expectations for businesses to respond to these changes. While criminologists have documented significant barriers contributing to employer resistance to hiring the formerly incarcerated, far less attention has been paid to employer hiring and retention of formerly incarcerated individuals. I suggest some possibilities for how understanding the dynamics and implications of employer hiring and retention of formerly incarcerated individuals can generate new conceptual and empirical insights of academic and practical relevance.