Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon Portland Community College

Tanya Maldonado

Contact information for Tanya Maldonado

Background Check/Resources

PCC Clear Clinic

Welcome to the PCC CLEAR (Community Legal & Educational Access & Referral) Clinic! The CLEAR Clinic is a legal clinic at PCC Cascade in North Portland, providing the following free legal services to people in the Portland metro area:

  • Criminal record and eviction expungements
  • DACA renewals
  • Housing and immigration court navigation
  • Legal name and gender-marker changes
  • Other legal advice and referrals for legal services, PCC resources, and community-based resources

The CLEAR Clinic aims to help all our community members reduce barriers to employment, housing, and education. We are dedicated to increasing access to justice, education, and career training, and to addressing the lasting impact of disproportionate law enforcement on people of color and low-income communities.

Background Check Information and Tools

It is hard to know what an employer can and cannot ask you in a background search. Sometimes life happens and we need help making a fresh start. Everyone has the right to happiness and satisfying work. Keep up your spirits and keep on truckin’. Here are some resources I urge you to do a self-investigation prior to your work search so you are not caught off guard and you have time to prepare for the job search and interviewing. In Oregon HB 2036 protects job seekers from unnecessary credit checks. More information is listed below.

While it is never fun to have your past rear its ugly head when you are meeting an employer – prepare yourself as it will come up. take the time to develop a personal and professional portfolio. The personal portfolio can include aspects of your professional portfolio (transcripts, scholarship awards, work samples) but will also need to have letters of support. These letters should address where you are now in your community, school, or work engagement and how you are contributing to society. Your Disclosure Letter should honestly address your convictions and history and provide an explanation from the heart. You need to address how you are different now, in behavior, thinking, activities/lifestyle, and where you not only have been but, where you are going. Here are some web links to help you write this letter. Just a reminder I am here as your employment specialist to help you write and proofread this document. The bottom line the employer who is considering hiring you needs to see how the dots are connected and feel like your past is really in the past.

Disclosure Letter Examples
More Resources

The Soft Skills Builder put together an article for speaking to your supervisor about your past criminal involvement.

www.iseek.org provides useful job search information for individuals with criminal histories. I agree with their suggestions. The legal help resources sadly are geared for Minnesota residents. So please refer to the ones I listed below.

Credit Check

Job seekers are entitled to one free credit check per year.

www.annualcreditreport.com or 877-322-8228

Annual Credit Report Request Service
P.O. Box 105283
Atlanta, GA 30348-5283

You will need to provide:

  • Full name
  • Date of Birth
  • SSN
  • Current address and previous address if you have not lived there for 2 years
HB 2036

Effective July 1, 2010, a new Oregon law limits how an employer may use an employee’s credit history. The new law prohibits discrimination against employees with bad credit history. The law applies to any employment action including hiring, promotion, demotion, termination, retaliation, etc.

HB 2036 details

Under federal regulations, an employer can consider a worker’s credit history when making hiring decisions for positions of responsibility, usually assumed to mean for management positions. The assumption is that someone with a poor credit history displays bad judgment in his or her personal life, and would not be any better at handling the employer’s money. An Oregon employer can still check credit history if it is directly related to the employee’s job, and if the employer discloses in writing that they will be checking the history and how that information will be used. The burden of proof rests with the employer meaning the employer should have a signed release from each applicant or employee before checking credit history. However, opponents of this policy have long argued that the usage of credit reports in selection results in de facto discrimination because African Americans and other minority applicants are statistically more likely to have poor credit history. The new law does permit an employer to consider information that is “substantially job-related” in selecting employees. This includes an employee who will have access to financial information beyond what is required for a retail transaction, and for occupations where credit history is required for bond or insurance purposes. Banks are excluded from this law, as are most agencies that hire law enforcement officers who will handle criminal cases.

Employees who think they are the victim of credit history discrimination can sue the employer (and recover attorney’s fees if they win, plus damages and penalties) or file a complaint with BOLI.

Background Check

From the addictions counseling program chair:
Students who are currently involved in the justice system on probation or parole may have a difficult time finding a practicum site. We recommend you get a full/accurate report of your history. If you have concerns about your background, you can look into getting a fitness determination.

You can find more information at ORS 181A.195 and ORS 267.237.

Here is a list of more specific conviction information: ORS 443.004

Oregon State Police SP – Criminal History Check

  • DHS Criminal History Check Unit: 503-378-5470
  • Governor’s Advocacy Office: 1-800-442-5238

Low-cost fingerprinting resource $15.00 (as of 1/2019). Let the clerk know it is for an FBI check.

Clackamas County Sheriff’s Office
Public Safety Training Center
12700 SE 82nd Ave.
Clackamas, OR 97015

HB 2442 Information

HB 2442 has been “fixed”. The new bill HB 2650 exempts most addiction counselors and mental health workers from most of the provisions of HB 2442. The exclusions are limited to aggravated murder, murder, rape in the first degree, sodomy in the first degree, unlawful sexual penetration in the first degree, and sexual abuse in the first degree.

FBI
Notes from a PCC student in 2017 to help others
  1. Get your “official” fingerprints taken.
  2. Fill out the FBI background.pdf form
  3. Fill out CC payment form
  4. Send the fingerprints, the form, and CC payment to:
    FBI CJIS Division – Summary Request
    000 Custer Hollow Road
    Clarksburg, WV 26306
  5. Wait…this takes a while so do it ASAP!

Re-Entry Community Support and Information

Re-Entry Support
Websites
Books
Organizations
  • Exodus Transitional Community: Contact Exodus via email atinfo@etcny.org OR (917) 492-0990
  • Osborne Association: To learn more about the Career Center, please contact Starsky Rivas at (718) 707-2617 or srivas@osborneny.org or Ms. Sanja P. Jones at (929) 239-5906 or sjones@osborneny.org.
  • Fortune Society: 212-691-7554, 29-76 Northern Blvd., Long Island City, NY 11101. Hours: Monday – Thursday: 8am-8pm, Friday: 8am-5pm
  • DOE Fund
  • Vera Institute of Justice
  • Cornbread Hustle: Temporary agency specializing in former justice-involved clients – based in Texas but serves nationwide
Research Articles Related to the Employment of Formerly Incarcerated Individuals

Presentation from ROAR Alliance on the DHS Background Check Process

WorkSource Oregon

The Employment Department also has individualized services, job placement assistance, resume writing, and support groups. You will need to complete the welcome process at any WorkSource Center first before contacting the sites listed below for tailored services.

  • Worksource Oregon
  • Multnomah County Worksource Southeast – 7916 SE Foster Rd. # 104 Portland, OR
  • SE Works
  • Washington County Worksource Beaverton-Hillsboro – 241 SW Edgeway Dr. Beaverton, OR (housed at the PCC Willow Creek Center)