Detroit City Council Adopts “Ban the Box” for Employment Applications

The City of Detroit (“City”) has become the most recent city to pass an ordinance that forbids the City from asking an applicant for a City job about prior felony convictions on the initial employment application form.

This is informally referred to as a “ban the box” law. “Ban the box” gets its name from employment applications requiring an applicant to check a box indicating whether they have been convicted of a crime. Grassroots groups and organizations have sought to enact these laws nationwide. Several

states and over twenty cities in the United States have already enacted these laws including Kalamazoo, Battle Creek, Boston, Chicago, and most recently Detroit. These laws typically apply only to applicants for public jobs.

Proponents of “ban the box” argue that convicted criminals are unfairly punished and incapable of being re-integrated into society due to their past conduct. However, as this movement advances, private employers should watch out, as three states, (Massachusetts, Hawaii and New Mexico) have already enacted ban the box laws that apply to all employers, not just public employers.

Employers are concerned about these “ban the box” laws. First, obtaining information about an applicant’s criminal history helps to screen out applicants that may not be suitable for a particular job, such as a convicted embezzler working with cash, or a convicted sex offender working with children. Second, an employer may have a duty to check the backgrounds of job applicants. A “ban the box” law would prevent an employer from doing so.

So far, Michigan has not adopted a “ban the box” law for private employers. We will keep you posted.