Getting a Job After Prison in Washington

There is one question that determines whether you get hired. Not the application. Not the background check. Not what the charge was or how long you were inside.

The question is this: why you, over the thirty other people I could hire who don't have a criminal record?

If you walk in without a ready answer, you will not get the job. The interviewer can see the pause the moment you don't have something prepared, and once they see it, the room shifts against you. What you need is an answer practiced enough to say with confidence and humility at the same time.

The answer that works is this:

Everybody deserves a second chance. Somebody is going to give me one. And they are going to get the best employee they ever had, because I am never, ever going to do something that sends me back to prison.

Say it clean. Say it without flinching. It makes no excuses, asks for no sympathy, and tells the employer the one thing they actually need to know: you have more reason to perform than anyone else in that stack.

Then live it. The light is on you from the first day. Use it. Work twice as hard as the person next to you. Show up earlier, stay later, and make that scrutiny your shining light, not a shadow. The person standing next to you does not have anyone watching them that closely. You do. That is the advantage if you decide to use it.

What the Law in Washington Says About Your Record

Washington is one of fifteen states that has extended ban the box protections to private employers. Washington's fair chance hiring law (RCW 49.94, 2018) prohibits employers with eight or more employees from including criminal history questions on initial job applications or in job postings. Criminal history inquiry is delayed until after an initial interview or until a conditional offer of employment has been made. Employers must conduct an individualized assessment before withdrawing a conditional offer based on criminal history, considering factors including the nature of the offense, time elapsed, and evidence of rehabilitation. Violations are enforced by the Washington State Human Rights Commission.

Seattle's Fair Chance Employment Ordinance goes further, requiring conditional offer before any criminal history inquiry and limiting consideration to directly related criminal conduct within the prior seven years (with some exceptions for specific vulnerable population roles).

Federal FCRA protections apply statewide. Non-conviction records older than seven years cannot appear on consumer reporting agency background checks for most positions.

Washington has a vacation of conviction law (RCW 9.94A.640 for felonies; RCW 9.96.060 for misdemeanors) allowing eligible individuals to petition for vacation of qualifying criminal records. A vacated conviction is treated as if it did not occur in most contexts. Eligibility and waiting periods depend on offense type, but many non-violent misdemeanors and some felony convictions are eligible after waiting periods. Washington also has provisions for automatic vacation of certain marijuana convictions following decriminalization.

Building the Answer Before You Need It

Washington's ban the box law gets you past the application and through the initial interview before your record can come up. Your answer at that point determines the outcome.

Washington Department of Corrections (DOC) provides education, vocational training, and Industries programs (Correctional Industries) inside state facilities. Washington's reentry system includes broad community partnerships and WorkSource reentry navigator services embedded in corrections facilities.

WorkSource Washington centers statewide, operated through the Employment Security Department, provide job search assistance, career counseling, training referrals, WOTC coordination, and Federal Bonding access. WorkSource has dedicated reentry navigators in many locations.

Washington's economy runs on technology (Seattle is one of the premier tech hubs in the world), aerospace, healthcare, agriculture, retail, and maritime. Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane, Bellevue, and Yakima are primary labor markets. Whatever you are applying for, make the answer specific to what that employer needs.

Practice it out loud. Until the hesitation is completely gone. Washington law gives you the application and first interview. Your answer earns the offer.

Companies in Washington That Hire People with Criminal Records

Washington's economy, anchored by Seattle's technology and aerospace sectors with significant agricultural and manufacturing activity across eastern Washington, creates consistent demand.

Amazon, Microsoft, Boeing, and major technology and aerospace employers in the Seattle metro have fair chance hiring programs, particularly in operations, logistics, and support roles. Walmart, Home Depot, Costco, and major food service operators have extensive Washington operations and national fair chance commitments. Healthcare systems including Swedish Health, Providence Health, and MultiCare Health System hire in support and entry-level roles. Agricultural employers across eastern Washington and the Columbia Basin hire seasonally and year-round. Construction contractors statewide face consistent labor shortages. Port operations in Seattle and Tacoma create consistent logistics and maritime demand.

WorkSource Washington centers provide employer connections and WOTC documentation statewide.

Staffing agencies across Seattle, Tacoma, Spokane, and the Tri-Cities are the most accessible first step.

For the full national list of companies with public fair chance commitments, see the InmateAid Fair Chance Employer Reference List.

The Tax Credit Employers Get for Hiring You

There is a federal program called the Work Opportunity Tax Credit, or WOTC. When an employer hires someone from a qualifying group, including individuals recently released from prison, the employer may receive a significant federal tax credit per qualifying hire. That is not charity. It is a business incentive the federal government created specifically to make hiring returning citizens financially advantageous.

You are not asking anyone to take a risk on you. You are telling them your hire comes with a tax benefit attached that none of the other thirty applicants can offer. Say it at the end of the interview, after you have made your case: I qualify for the Work Opportunity Tax Credit. Hiring me may put money back in your business. And I will give you the best work you have ever gotten from a new hire, because I have too much to lose to give you anything less.

WorkSource Washington coordinates WOTC certification and Federal Bonding access for employers statewide.

Where to Get Help in Washington

WorkSource Washington centers statewide provide job search assistance, career counseling, training referrals, WOTC coordination, and Federal Bonding access. Find your nearest center at worksourcewa.com.

Washington Department of Corrections provides education, vocational training, and Correctional Industries work programs inside facilities. Contact through doc.wa.gov.

Northwest Justice Project (nwjp.org) provides free civil legal help statewide for eligible low-income Washingtonians, including conviction vacation guidance.

Columbia Legal Services (columbialegal.org) provides free legal assistance in eastern Washington including reentry and record relief.

The Federal Bonding Program, coordinated through WorkSource, provides free fidelity bonding to employers who hire returning citizens.