Plenty of jobs are open to you with a felony on your record. Hospitality, construction, skilled trades, manufacturing, warehouse logistics, and a growing roster of Fortune 500 companies with formal second-chance hiring programs all actively recruit people with convictions. A handful of fields — healthcare, banking, and certain licensed professions — carry legal restrictions worth knowing about before you apply. Federal and state laws also protect you during hiring: federal agencies, for example, cannot ask about your criminal history until after they have made you a conditional offer.
Service and Hospitality
Restaurants, hotels, and catering companies are among the most accessible employers for people with records. Turnover is high and demand for reliable workers is steady, so hiring managers tend to focus on what you can do now rather than what happened before. Line cooks, prep cooks, dishwashers, and food runners are evaluated largely on performance, and many kitchens use a working interview — sometimes called a “stage” — where your skills speak for themselves. Advancing into kitchen management or executive chef roles depends on experience and industry certifications, not a four-year degree.
Hotels offer a similar range of entry points through housekeeping, maintenance, laundry, and front-desk support, positions that rarely involve heavy background screening and often lead to supervisory roles once you have shown reliability. Entry-level hospitality wages generally run $15 to $20 per hour, with overtime and tips adding meaningfully to take-home pay.
Skilled Trades, Manufacturing, and Warehouse Work
Welding, carpentry, and electrical work offer some of the highest earning potential for anyone willing to invest in training. Welders earned a median annual salary of about $51,000 as of 2024, with experienced tradespeople in high-demand specialties earning significantly more.1Bureau of Labor Statistics. Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers A trade certification gives employers documented proof of competence that helps them look past a record.
Warehouse logistics and assembly line work provide steady employment with benefits. These roles often involve operating forklifts, managing inventory, or coordinating shipments inside large distribution centers. Employers in this sector focus on safety compliance and productivity, which tends to make them less concerned about non-violent past offenses. Consistent performance can move you into warehouse management or logistics coordination roles with higher pay.
Trucking and Port Work
Commercial trucking pays well and faces persistent labor shortages, but federal rules create specific barriers. You are permanently disqualified from holding a commercial driver’s license if you used a commercial vehicle to commit a felony involving controlled substances.2eCFR. 49 CFR 383.51 – Disqualification of Drivers Using any commercial vehicle to commit other felonies brings a one-year disqualification for a first offense and a lifetime ban for a second, though a lifetime ban outside the controlled substances category can potentially be reduced after 10 years if you meet reinstatement requirements.
Work at ports or maritime facilities requires a Transportation Worker Identification Credential (TWIC). Certain felonies — espionage, treason, terrorism-related offenses, murder, and improper transportation of hazardous materials — permanently disqualify you.3eCFR. 49 CFR 1572.103 – Disqualifying Criminal Offenses A broader list, including robbery, arson, firearms offenses, drug distribution, and fraud, disqualifies you only if the conviction is within seven years of your application or you were released from prison within the past five. Older convictions may still clear.
Large Employers With Second-Chance Hiring
A growing number of major corporations have formalized a commitment to hiring people with criminal records. The Second Chance Business Coalition includes more than 50 member companies, among them Home Depot, Microsoft, Walmart, Target, JPMorgan Chase, McDonald’s, Kroger, and CVS.4Second Chance Business Coalition. Second Chance Business Coalition These companies often train hiring managers to weigh qualifications first and to consider the nature and age of an offense in relation to the job’s duties.
Starbucks and other employers have internal policies requiring a fair review of each applicant’s background rather than automatic disqualification, and many of these programs include mentorship, onboarding support, and retention services. When you scan job postings, look for phrases like “fair chance employer” or “we consider qualified applicants with criminal histories.” That language signals a formal commitment.
Jobs With Legal Restrictions
Some fields have federal laws that bar people with certain convictions from working in specific roles. Knowing these restrictions upfront saves you from investing time in a path that is closed.
Healthcare
The Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General is required to exclude individuals convicted of certain offenses from participating in Medicare, Medicaid, and other federal healthcare programs. Mandatory exclusion categories include healthcare fraud, patient abuse or neglect, felony-level financial misconduct related to healthcare delivery, and felony convictions for illegally manufacturing or distributing controlled substances while involved in healthcare.5U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Inspector General. Referrals for Exclusion Based on Convictions If you land on the OIG exclusion list, no hospital, pharmacy, or clinic that takes federal funding can hire you into any role tied to patient care or billing. Non-clinical hospital jobs like maintenance or food service may still be open depending on the employer.
Banking and Finance
Section 19 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act prohibits anyone convicted of a crime involving dishonesty, breach of trust, or money laundering from working at an FDIC-insured bank or credit union without prior written consent from the FDIC.6FDIC. Prohibition Under Section 19 of the Federal Deposit Insurance Act The restriction reaches directors, officers, employees, and independent contractors who influence management decisions, and it bars you from owning or controlling an insured depository institution. A conviction unrelated to financial misconduct — a DUI or an assault charge, for instance — generally falls outside Section 19.
Licensed Professions
Law, nursing, teaching, real estate, cosmetology, and many other licensed professions require applicants to meet a “good moral character” standard. State licensing boards have discretion to deny, condition, or delay a license based on your record. Weight given to a felony depends on the nature of the offense, how much time has passed, and whether the conviction relates to the profession. Some states have reformed their licensing laws to prohibit blanket disqualifications. Check your state board’s rules before enrolling in a training program.
Protections During the Hiring Process
The federal Fair Chance Act prohibits federal agencies from requesting criminal history information from job applicants before extending a conditional offer.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 5 U.S. Code 9202 – Limitations on Requests for Criminal History Record Information More than 35 states have adopted similar policies for government positions, and over a dozen states extend those protections to private employers as well.
Even where no state ban-the-box law applies, EEOC enforcement guidance discourages blanket policies that automatically reject applicants with records. Employers who screen for criminal history are expected to weigh three factors: the nature and seriousness of the offense, the time that has passed since the offense or completion of the sentence, and the nature of the job.8U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Enforcement Guidance on the Consideration of Arrest and Conviction Records in Employment Decisions Under Title VII They are also expected to give you a chance to explain. If an employer rejects you without any individualized assessment, you may have grounds to file a discrimination complaint.
The Fair Credit Reporting Act limits what background check companies can report. Arrest records more than seven years old cannot appear on a standard employment background check.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 U.S.C. 1681c – Requirements Relating to Information Contained in Consumer Reports Convictions have no federal time limit and can be reported indefinitely, though some states restrict conviction reporting to seven or ten years for most positions. Jobs paying $75,000 or more annually may fall outside those time limits. If an employer plans to pass on you because of a background check, they must give you a copy of the report and a summary of your rights first.10Federal Trade Commission. Background Checks What Employers Need to Know Review the report. Errors in criminal background checks are not uncommon, and you can dispute inaccuracies with the reporting agency.
Incentives You Can Raise in an Interview
Two federal programs give employers a financial reason to hire you. Mentioning them during an interview can shift the conversation from your past to the concrete benefits of bringing you on.
Work Opportunity Tax Credit
The Work Opportunity Tax Credit lets employers claim up to $2,400 per eligible hire — 40 percent of the first $6,000 in wages — for hiring a person convicted of a felony within one year of their conviction or release.11Internal Revenue Service. Work Opportunity Tax Credit A reduced credit of 25 percent applies if the employee works at least 120 hours but fewer than 400. The most recent congressional authorization covered individuals who began work on or before December 31, 2025. The WOTC has been extended multiple times, so check the IRS website for the latest status before referencing it.
Federal Bonding Program
The Federal Bonding Program, run by the U.S. Department of Labor, provides free fidelity bonds that insure employers against theft or dishonesty by a new hire with a record. Bonds cover the first six months of employment and range from $5,000 to $25,000 in coverage, at no cost to employer or job seeker.12U.S. Department of Labor. Federal Bonding Program If an employer raises concerns about the risk of hiring you, offering to arrange a federal bond addresses that worry directly. Apply through your local American Job Center or state workforce agency.
Clearing or Sealing Your Record
Expungement is one of the most effective long-term moves for expanding your options. When a record is expunged, it is treated as though the offense never occurred, and most employers will not see it on a background check. Sealing produces a similar practical result, though law enforcement and certain government agencies may still have access. Eligibility, waiting periods, and qualifying offenses vary significantly by state.
Thirteen states plus the District of Columbia had enacted “Clean Slate” laws as of 2026, automating the sealing process for eligible offenses so you don’t have to file a petition. In other states, you can typically petition a court to expunge or seal certain convictions after completing your sentence and waiting a set period. Contact your local legal aid office or public defender to find out what applies where you live.
Self-Employment and Gig Work
Starting your own business lets you skip third-party background checks entirely. Service-based businesses like landscaping, residential cleaning, moving services, and handyman work need relatively little startup capital, often under a few thousand dollars for basic equipment and local licensing. Working as a sole proprietor or independent contractor puts you in control of your own schedule and growth and shifts the conversation to the quality of your current work.
The gig economy offers more immediate income through delivery, rideshare, and task-based platforms. Some platforms do run background checks, but look-back periods and disqualifying offenses vary — a platform that screens for violent offenses in the past seven years may still be open to you if your conviction is older or involved a different type of charge. Freelancing in graphic design, writing, web development, or coding puts your portfolio in front of your record.
Both paths usually mean 1099 tax status rather than W-2 employment. As an independent contractor, you pay your own income and self-employment taxes and don’t get employer-sponsored benefits like health insurance or retirement contributions.13Internal Revenue Service. Independent Contractor Defined Setting aside roughly 25 to 30 percent of your earnings for taxes from the start prevents a surprise at filing time.