Leap of faith

Photo © pngKing | Adobestock

Six years ago, Greater Atlanta nursery owner Eric Hill looked past the records of felony convictions, incarcerations and substance abuse. He saw not burdens but individuals eager for a second-chance opportunity to rebuild their lives, prove their worth and forge a brighter future.

“I needed the help,” says Hill, the owner of Autumn Hill Nursery, a full-service garden center and residential landscape design/build firm, since 1992. “They were just looking for a second chance, and doesn’t everyone deserve a second chance?”

At the time, the Vision Warriors Church had opened down the street from Hill’s Woodstock, Georgia-based business. The nondenominational Christian group caters to recovering addicts and works with them to find jobs, housing and support in their ongoing recovery while holding them accountable for their actions. Many of these individuals have also been incarcerated at some point in their histories for drug-related crimes.

Hill had always enjoyed mentoring and coaching employees to bigger and better things. This seemed like a similar scenario. After careful consideration, he told Vision Warriors that he needed laborers at his nursery if anyone was interested. Since then, Hill has employed nearly two dozen formerly incarcerated persons (FIPs) from Vision Warriors. Generally, these individuals have been excellent employees who show up every day and do their jobs without incident. Some have even maximized their opportunity at Autumn Hill and excelled beyond expectations.

For example, Drew showed up at Hill’s doorstep with personal baggage, a criminal record and zero experience. Three years later, Hill was subsidizing Drew’s education to earn a computer sciences degree from the local community college. Then there’s Jessie, whose desire to immerse himself in the landscape side of the business impressed Hill so much that he helped him graduate from a local horticultural program. Now, Jessie runs Hill’s landscape program.

Hill acknowledges the challenges associated with employing people with criminal records. And while he’s never experienced any security or safety concerns with formerly incarcerated workers, some individuals have struggled to integrate. “It’s not always easy,” he says. “Recovering from addiction is a complex process, and for some, this may not be the right fit at this point in their journey.”

Hill’s experience is a powerful testament to the win-win of second-chance hiring. His formerly incarcerated employees, eager to rebuild their lives, have consistently impressed him with their dedication and work ethic. These success stories offer valuable lessons for the green and horticultural industries facing a seemingly chronic labor shortage. Multiple national studies showcase the undeniable benefits of employing individuals with criminal records, presenting compelling evidence for business owners to tap into this available reservoir of forgotten talent.

First, consider that an estimated 1 in 3 American adults — more than 70 million people — carry a criminal record, and more than 600,000 men and women are released from incarceration each year. Burdened by the stigma of a felony conviction, nearly 75% of formerly incarcerated individuals remain unemployed a year after release, according to the ACLU. Many people with criminal records are underemployed or in insecure jobs, and talented, motivated workers who are widely available are being ignored and stigmatized by the broader workforce.

However, when provided with a second chance, these laborers tend to thrive, benefiting the individuals, the companies that employ them and the communities around them.

The impact is transformative for formerly incarcerated persons. Employment offers a fresh start, allowing them greater opportunities to provide for themselves and their families successfully. Research from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce shows that employed individuals are twice as likely to avoid arrest two years after release compared to their unemployed counterparts. This highlights the critical role employment plays in reducing recidivism.

And the benefits extend far beyond the individual. The U.S. Chamber report, “The Business Case for Criminal Justice Reform: Second Chance Hiring,” emphasizes that connecting ex-offenders with employment strengthens communities by lowering recidivism and fostering a more skilled workforce. This translates to a significant economic impact, and the report estimates the U.S. GDP loses $78 billion to $87 billion annually by excluding formerly incarcerated people from employment opportunities.

Real-world success stories, like those experienced at Autumn Hill Nursery, demonstrate the potential for the green and horticultural industries. For example, Nehemiah Manufacturing, a Cincinnati-based consumer packing firm, provides a compelling testimonial to the value of employing the formerly incarcerated. Since 2009, 80% of its workforce (180 employees) has had criminal backgrounds. Yet its annual turnover rate is just 15%, significantly lower than the industry average of 38.5%.

Despite the positives, substantial barriers persist, says Melissa Dickerson, chief of staff at Honest Jobs, a leading national job board dedicated to connecting individuals with criminal records with second-chance employers who value skills and potential and provide opportunities without discrimination and bias. Hiring people with criminal backgrounds includes concerns about legal liability, safety, risk and the potential impact on the company’s brand and culture if it is discovered that some employees are "ex-cons."

If a green industry business owner plans to tap into the formerly incarcerated labor pool, Dickerson suggests making it a component of their company’s culture. This includes educating their teams and communicating what fair-chance hiring means to the company and what offering employment regardless of criminal background represents.

“A lot of people assume that an employer who participates in fair-chance hiring is going to hire anybody with any type of record,” Dickerson says. “And that’s very rarely the case. Even with fair-chance hiring [practices], employers are still looking at people’s backgrounds to ensure a person is suitable for the job and that there isn’t anything in their background that might conflict with the job, their duties or the company’s mission.

“It’s important to communicate to employees that not everybody with a criminal record is dangerous or should be concerned about,” she adds. “They’re just human beings who made mistakes, wound up with criminal records and now can’t find jobs.”

Neal Glatt has had extensive experience employing and working with formerly incarcerated persons during his time in the professional landscape and snow and ice management industries.

“Our industries are ignoring many talent pools — the uneducated, the inexperienced, part-time workers, retirees and those who were incarcerated and have felony records,” says Glatt, who is now a business coach and management consultant with GrowTheBench, which caters to the landscape and snow industries. “I’m very passionate about creating high-quality employment and high-quality outcomes for people, and that means viewing [formerly incarcerated persons] as people and giving them the benefit of the doubt.”

While Glatt advocates second-chance hiring in the green and horticultural industries, he is also a strong proponent of “open hiring,” which eliminates questions about an individual’s personal history that could bias an employer during the hiring process.

“Cosmetics retailer The Body Shop famously asks only three questions: Can you work legally in the U.S.? Can you stand on your feet for eight hours? And can you lift 50 pounds? If the answers are yes, yes, yes, then when a job comes up, they employ you,” Glatt says. “Of course, their cost to hire was like 90% cheaper, and their employee retention and performance rates [were above average], too.”

Like Dickerson, Glatt emphasizes integrating these fair-chance hiring practices into a company’s overall culture. This shift fosters a more inclusive and supportive work environment for everyone. Moreover, many positions in nurseries, greenhouses and garden centers don’t require extensive training and often involve minimal customer interaction. This presents a unique opportunity to tap into an alternative talented pool of individuals eager to contribute and rebuild their lives.

Glatt and Dickerson are clear: Safety remains paramount. They don’t advocate hiring anyone who could threaten colleagues, customers or clients. However, it’s essential to consider the context of many criminal records. Many jobseekers with past offenses committed them as young adults, often involving drug-related mistakes or substance abuse issues. Today, they’re focused on rebuilding their lives and becoming productive members of society.

Glatt reinforces this point: “The idea of ‘once a felon, always a felon’ is being proven wrong.” While there’s a moderate return-to-incarceration rate upon release, studies show that providing the formerly incarcerated with employment opportunities significantly reduces that number, bringing it below 10%, Glatt says. This highlights the power of second chances in breaking the cycle of recidivism.

Studies show that more than 80% of employers report that their formerly incarcerated workers perform the same or better than the average general population worker, Glatt says. In addition, these workers are proving to be prime candidates for education, development and management training. In the end, he adds that formerly incarcerated employees make significant contributions and stick around with their employers for the long term.

“The performance and retention opportunities [with the formerly incarcerated] are really significant,” Glatt adds. “There are really positive outcomes happening out there if you’re willing to overlook [an individual’s] background and invest in some skills training. All I’m asking is to judge people for who they are now and how they’re acting today rather than what’s happened to them in their past.”

With second-chance hiring, businesses gain access to a motivated, dedicated and often untapped talent pool, while formerly incarcerated individuals get a structured path to begin rebuilding their lives. The key lies in creating a fair and inclusive hiring process.

However, navigating the legal landscape is crucial. Hiring laws regarding criminal background checks and what questions can or must be asked vary by state. Dickerson emphasizes the importance of staying informed about employment laws to ensure compliance. Beyond legal compliance, there’s an important human element. Dickerson acknowledges that employers must shift their perspective to move beyond traditional hiring philosophy and embrace a leap of faith with second-chance candidates.

“Personally, I think anything that helps to provide opportunities for people to prove themselves as the best candidate before that bias is introduced is a good thing,” Dickerson says. “Unfortunately, [a felony conviction] does lead to a lot of rescinded offers because people go through the interview process and are selected as the best candidate, but then the background check is done, and the offer is rescinded.

“If an employer sees that they’re consistently rejecting the best applicants because of their backgrounds, then maybe they need to look at the types of background they’re excluding people for,” she adds.

Autumn Hill’s Eric Hill bristles at the notion that hiring formerly incarcerated people somehow labels him a “Good Samaritan.” He admits his need for labor drove his initial decision. And he would not have jeopardized his nursery and brought someone on board if they’d been involved in a violent crime. But a lot of the guys who came to him over the years did time as young men because of drug-related offenses. Recognizing the potential for rehabilitation and growth, Hill felt he could look past those transgressions. Over time, the majority of those he hired proved him right.

“Yes, the risk has been well worth it, and I would encourage others to do it, too,” he says. “I’m 60 years old, and I’m still trying to learn how to be more empathetic [toward others] and how to put myself in their shoes. And sometimes, when you’re in the position to help, well, you help.”

Mike Zawacki is a Cleveland-based writer and editor who has spent the last 20 years covering various aspects of the green and horticultural industries.