A Guide to Companies that Hire Felons

Life has its ups and downs, and some people may get momentarily stuck near the bottom. If your life circumstances have led to you being incarcerated for a felony offense, you’ve probably encountered difficulty finding sustainable employment. It may help you to know that some employers are willing to hire qualified felons. 

If you ask around in your local area, you may find some employers who will hire you, but your best bet may be large organizations like national food chains and retailers. Many of these companies have made a commitment to giving felons a second chance through employment, so these companies are definitely the best place to start your job search. 

If you are a felon who is seeking employment, here is what you need to know about finding work as a felon. 

Employment For Felons

There are many consequences for a felony conviction. The most impactful for many is the loss of state security clearance required to work in certain professions. There is also a negative mark left on your background for potentially your entire life. Employers can see that you are a felon and that can impact their hiring decisions. 

Though, all is not lost, because employers do have some incentive to hire convicted felons. The core incentive that drives people to hire felons is the opportunity to help someone in need. Felons will often work harder to earn their employer’s trust, so there are some great benefits to employing them. 

Hiring a felon can also allow employers to obtain federal tax credits. The Work Opportunity Tax Credit provides employers who hire qualified felons with a tax credit of up to 25% of their first year’s wages. This only applies if the employee works a minimum of 120 hours. If the employee works more than 400 hours, the tax credit can be as high as 40%. 

That’s not all. States and municipalities also offer incentives for hiring felons in some cases. With this being the case, you can see why there are abundant work opportunities for hard-working ex-felons. 

9 Companies That Hire Felons

As we’ve mentioned previously, the best places for felons to seek employment are large companies that operate nationally. This is because these companies often have the infrastructure needed to support large-scale Work Opportunity Tax Credit-based employment programs. They are also well-equipped to take on the financial risk of hiring felons. 

These are some large companies that hire felons:

Trader Joe’s

Trader Joe’s is a national grocery store chain the offers safe, inclusive environments for their employees and customers. They hire felons, so if you have any prior experience at grocery stores, this company may be a good place to start. 

Tesla, Inc

Tesla is a company that is focused on electric vehicles and green energy production. Although Tesla is known to conduct background checks on all of its employees, it is possible to work here if you are a felon. Whether you will be able to may depend on the state you are in, so ask the human resources department if they accept applications from felons before applying. 

Abbott Laboratories

Abbott Laboratories is an organization that has nearly 100,000 employees. They were rated as one of the best employers for diversity in 2020 by Forbes Magazine. Their leadership believes that diversity is important, so they hire felons to ensure that people of all backgrounds of opportunities for meaningful employment. 

Comcast

Comcast is one of the largest telecommunications conglomerates. They have operations all over the world, and surprisingly, they do hire ex-offenders. Their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives show that they value providing opportunities to people, regardless of their gender or ethnic background. Hiring felons allows them to include as many types of people as possible, so they offer some positions to qualified felons. 

PepsiCo, Inc

PepsiCo is primarily focused on manufacturing and distributing its vast variety of drink and snack products. As a multinational brand, they have the resources needed to give meaningful opportunities to American felons. 

Coca Cola

Coca-Cola, PepsiCo’s main competitor, is also known for distributing a large number of beverages and snack products. They don’t have any specific mention of hiring ex-felons, they don’t require felons to disclose their past felonies during the interview process. The positions you can qualify for at this company may vary depending on where you are and what your background is. 

AT&T

This is another large telecommunications company that cares deeply about breaking the stigma towards felons. They promote inclusion and are willing to hire felons in many areas. Though, they don’t accept felons who were involved with technology-related crimes, such as fraud. Be sure to disclose your history when necessary. It’s best, to be honest upfront because they will perform a background check.

McDonald’s

This world-famous fast-food chain is known as the starting point for many young adults’ careers. Though, they also create opportunities for felons to restart their careers. If you want to work for McDonald’s be aware that their policy for hiring felons may only apply to restaurants run by McDonald’s, not those run by franchisees.  

CVS Health

This is a nationwide pharmacy brand that has more than 245,000 employees across the country. There are more than 9500 commercial pharmacies located across the country, and they provide prescriptions, as well as medical supplies and supplements to their many customers. If you want to work for CVS and you have a felony, you may have some options. For example, they often offer career opportunities in sales, logistics, beauty, customer service, and administration to people with felony records. Keep in mind that some career paths may be off-limits, but ultimately, the company’s recruitment team will handle hires on a case-by-case basis. 

Felons Can Find Employment 

If you have a felony record, don’t lose hope. Employers are willing to allow you to work for them. All you need to do is be persistent in your job search, and submit applications to the right companies. Make sure you keep your resume up-to-date and be as outgoing and charismatic as you can during the interview process. In time, one of the many companies that hire felons will notice you and offer you employment. Until then, good luck in your search.