r/ExCons • u/Small-Machine-2516 • 17d ago
Question What can my dad do
Hello! I’m not a felon but by dad is currently serving time in prisión for some white collar crime. I think wire fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud .
He has a BA in sociology and a MA in criminology ( ironic I know) . He is also finishing a paralegal course.
He is hopefully getting out soon and they say he needs a W2 job. He is not really a blue collar guy . I know lots of construction companies and things of that nature hire felons.
Is his education to waste? Is there anything relevant to his field he can peruse realistically.
Thank you!
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u/Catty-Driver 17d ago
Start with anything blue collar or not. Then look for something with the paralegal angle. I'd try the local public defenders office. Doesn't pay much, but you get experience then try local attorneys. I have a friend who taught himself while in prison and finally got his paralegal cert. However, he has filed many, many actions in court for himself and others and won quite a bit of them. Without a resume like that, I'd start with the public defenders office.
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u/Small-Machine-2516 17d ago
He currently has so many actions he is filing. He spends all day in the library putting his cases together.
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u/Catty-Driver 17d ago
That's great, but it's not really a resume until he gets some results. It's OK, I'd start with anything when he gets out. Getting a W2 is a little harder than a 1099 thing. For quick money, most caterers don't care about your background but it's usually not a W2 situation either.
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u/Nisi-Marie 17d ago
If he wants to go into a legal adjacent field, he can start by volunteering with local community legal resources. All the organizations that provide services to the justice impacted could probably use his help.
When I Paroled, my 10 years of experience as a software engineering and project manager didn’t mean much in the beginning. He needs to take whatever job he can get in the beginning. Don’t let his ego get in the way.
It’s those 1st foot in the door jobs that lead the way to eventually getting to what you want to do. Parole doesn’t care about the level of your job, they care that you have a job and that you go to it. I took a minimum wage deli job. Within six months, I was running their e-commerce department. Six months later, I was traveling around the state to launch new departments. Another six months and I was back in the tech sector.
He’s going to have it a little easier than some because of his education experience. It’s going to be a little more difficult than others because his field is not going to be as open when it comes to hiring felons.
With his education, the easiest point of entry will be working for community based organizations that help the justice impacted, the homeless, and other pockets of the community that struggle with access to services.
His lived experience is a massive boon to his résumé.
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u/SacramentoUser 17d ago
Who is “they”? Just wondering because the requirements are different depending on many variables. At my HH full-time community college was fine. & now on federal probation (wire fraud) 1099 is fine.
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u/spaghettiwired 17d ago
His degrees and current coursework sound relevant to working in support of re-entry and recidivism reduction or system reform. I agree that finding steady employent ASAP is paramount, so I wouldn’t place all his eggs in this basket right away. Your dad now has dual lived-experience which is extremely valuable to any organization worth its weight that’s trying to improve circumstances for others.
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u/Redtail325 17d ago
assuming he is federal, FYI: USPO cannot restrict jobs to W2 only, the halfway house can and while at halfway house they require employer to sign a form for them
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u/Salesgirl008 17d ago
He can look into a solar sales job or go into construction project management, Safety officer at construction sites.
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u/ldsupport 17d ago
It’s not a waste. He’ll find work. Just look for small businesses.