Criminal records and post-prison employment in Ghana: Formal and informal means of performing criminal background checks
Baffour, Frank Darkwa, Francis, Abraham P., Chong, Mark David, and Harris, Nonie (2023) Criminal records and post-prison employment in Ghana: Formal and informal means of performing criminal background checks. Criminology and Criminal Justice, 23 (4). pp. 629-647.
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Abstract
This article contributes to the discussion on criminal record-keeping and post-prison employment from the perspective of a developing country. We present and discuss the results of a qualitative research based on interviews with 13 employers in Ghana about the use of criminal background checks in the hiring process. Data suggest a perceived lack of trust towards formerly incarcerated individuals primarily rooted in traditional cultural and moral values. Participants perceived that being associated with people with a criminal record is largely disapproved at the societal level. As a result, formerly incarcerated individuals are discriminated against in the employment setting. We also found that community dynamics and relations manage to overcome the lack of accuracy and reliability of state-provided criminal history information. Due to the absence of reliable access to criminal records through official channels, employers resort to informal means relying on community ties to get access to information about the past and character of job applicants. We conclude by discussing the implications of our findings for research, policy and practice.
| Item ID: | 79959 |
|---|---|
| Item Type: | Article (Research - C1) |
| ISSN: | 1748-8966 |
| Keywords: | Criminal background checks, criminal records, employment discrimination, prisoner re-entry, qualitative research |
| Copyright Information: | © The Author(s) 2023. This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) which permits any use, reproduction and distribution of the work without further permission provided the original work is attributed as specified on the SAGE and Open Access pages (https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/open-access-at-sage). |
| Date Deposited: | 21 Aug 2023 04:07 |
| FoR Codes: | 44 HUMAN SOCIETY > 4402 Criminology > 440202 Correctional theory, offender treatment and rehabilitation @ 50% 44 HUMAN SOCIETY > 4409 Social work > 440902 Counselling, wellbeing and community services @ 50% |
| SEO Codes: | 23 LAW, POLITICS AND COMMUNITY SERVICES > 2301 Community services > 230106 Employment services @ 50% 23 LAW, POLITICS AND COMMUNITY SERVICES > 2304 Justice and the law > 230408 Rehabilitation and correctional services @ 50% |
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