NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- With the Davidson County election still a little more than three months away, campaigns were already hard at work, including one group trying to gather signatures to remove a specific question from Metro job applications.
That question: "Have you ever been convicted of a crime?"
Supporters of the petition said it levels the playing field for people who've made mistakes in years past.
The petition doesn't ban managers from asking about criminal history in later interviews, only the initial job application.
There were exceptions, like jobs dealing with public safety and children.
Folks behind the so-called "Ban the Box" petition said requiring preliminary job candidates to admit past convictions can encourage hiring managers to immediately take them out of consideration, without looking at how long ago that crime took place or the qualifications of the candidate today.
“It kind of throws them off, and we think quite often that application goes in the trash, quite frankly,” said Kenneth Caine with the Ban the Box campaign.
For its part, Metro’s human resources department said the first thing it looks for is whether candidates have the skills for a specific job, not whether they've been convicted of crimes.
Metro's online application did give applicants a chance to explain their past convictions.
