MA CORI Reform: Now What?
The CORI Reform bill passed in Massachusetts, now what? Aaron Tanaka, Executive Director of the Boston Workers Alliance (BWA) and co-chair of the Commonwealth CORI Coalition (of which GLAD was a member) stopped by the GLAD office this week to answer that very question.
GLAD staff members regularly hold our own lunchtime discussions on a number of issues both work and non-work related, but after Governor Patrick signed the CORI Reform bill this summer there was a flurry of office emails about specifically what this bill means. Who better for us to reach out to for these answers than the leader behind it all, Aaron?
Aaron provided us with a history of how the BWA formed and the goals behind improving fair hiring practices for all individuals. The BWA was formed in 2005 at a meeting of unemployed workers at a church in Roxbury. The membership includes people with CORIs, who have been at the forefront of this nearly six-year campaign for justice. When asked by attorney Gary Buseck what turned the tide in favor of reform, Aaron recounted a march organized by BWA in 2007 where 2,000 people impacted by the outdated CORI system marched from Roxbury to the State House demanding CORI Reform. According to Aaron this generated a lot of attention and served as a reminder to the Governor that this was an issue he promised to support. A promise he signed into law this August.
CORI Reform was tied up in committee along with the Transgender Non-Discrimination and Hate Crimes bill in 2010. As someone who participated in both coalitions, it was exciting to experience at least one legislative victory for equality in Massachusetts. When Aaron addressed a question on whether CORI Reform faced formal opposition, I realized that was the main difference between the two bills. There was no formal opposition to CORI Reform, whereas the Transgender Non-Discrimination and Hate Crimes bill faced formal opposition spearheaded by groups like Mass Resistance.
But that’s not to say that CORI Reform did not face its own set of challenges. Legislators feared supporting reform would make them seem “soft” on crime in an election year when they needed their districts’ support. Aaron explained that the BWA worked tirelessly to change this perception from “soft on crime” to smart on crime. The old CORI law limited job opportunities for individuals after they had served their time, leading to high unemployment rates and a return to crime as a means of income. Ultimately the CORI Coalition was able to gather support from law enforcement officials and businesses.
The new CORI law that we have in Massachusetts is progressive in terms of banning the box from initial job applications and reducing the amount of time to seal felonies and misdemeanors. While most of the CORI law will not go into effect until 2012, “ban the box” will be effective as of November of this year. This means that going forward employers will no longer be allowed to ask for a CORI history right at the beginning of the application process, allowing individuals to get their foot in the door and have a fair interview without possible discrimination based on their past record.
Aaron spoke about the work that still lies ahead in terms of educating employers and people with CORIs about these changes. Ban the box goes into effect in November, yet a large number of employers do not know this. But the BWA will not stop. They recently started up a CORI-friendly temp agency that will not only help people with CORIs get jobs, but will also educate local employers of the changes and actively recruit employers to take proactive steps beyond what is highlighted in the law. And Aaron reminded us all that while we have a great victory in Massachusetts, ultimately this fight will need to reach the national level in order to knock down the most intrusive CORI policies.