70 Million Jobs pivots to staffing agency model for formerly incarcerated

[Daniel E.]

70 Million Jobs pivots to staffing agency model for formerly incarcerated | HR Dive
April 23, 2019

Dive Brief:

• 70 Million Jobs, a for-profit employment platform for the formerly incarcerated, announced last week it will shift its business model from that of a job board to a staffing agency.
• The change will allow the firm to better leverage its "position of control" while creating more opportunities for job seekers, it said. Launched in 2017, 70 Million Jobs cited said its community now includes 10 million formerly imprisoned men and women and that it works with companies including Perdue, Berkshire Hathaway, Uber, MOD Pizza and Denny's.
• As a staffing agency, the company will handle several employer-related duties including paying salaries, taxes, insurance and administering background checks. "Our goal is to be the largest employer of people with criminal backgrounds in the United States," Richard Bronson, 70 Million Jobs' founder and CEO, said in a statement.

...Talent shortages in an employee-driven market have driven some employers to expand their talent pools to include the formerly incarcerated. Key to that consideration is the oft-cited FBI estimate that more than 70 million Americans (about 1 in 3) have a criminal record — that's not necessarily a criminal conviction, but still represents a sizable part of the population.