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Ban-the-box laws: Fair and effective?

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  • Kaestner, Robert
  • Wang, Xufei

Abstract

Ban-the-box (BTB) laws are a widely used public policy rooted in employment law related to unnecessarily exclusionary hiring practices. BTB laws are intended to improve the employment opportunities of those with criminal backgrounds by giving them a fair chance during the hiring process. Prior research on the effectiveness of these laws in meeting their objective is limited and inconclusive. In this article, we extend the prior literature in two ways: we expand the years of analysis to a period of rapid expansion of BTB laws and we examine different types of BTB laws depending on the employers affected (e.g., public sector). Results indicate that BTB laws, any type of BTB law or BTB laws covering different types of employers, have no systematic or statistically significant association with employment of low-educated men, both young and old and across racial and ethnic groups. We speculate that the lack of effectiveness of BTB laws stems from the difficulty in enforcing such laws and already high rates of employer willingness to hire those with criminal histories.

Suggested Citation

  • Kaestner, Robert & Wang, Xufei, 2024. "Ban-the-box laws: Fair and effective?," International Review of Law and Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:irlaec:v:78:y:2024:i:c:s0144818824000127
    DOI: 10.1016/j.irle.2024.106192
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    1. A. Colin Cameron & Douglas L. Miller, 2015. "A Practitioner’s Guide to Cluster-Robust Inference," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 50(2), pages 317-372.
    2. Daniel Shoag & Stan Veuger, 2021. "Ban-the-Box Measures Help High-Crime Neighborhoods," Journal of Law and Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 64(1), pages 85-105.
    3. Terry‐Ann Craigie, 2020. "Ban The Box, Convictions, And Public Employment," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 58(1), pages 425-445, January.
    4. Zoë Cullen & Will Dobbie & Mitchell Hoffman, 2023. "Increasing the Demand for Workers with a Criminal Record," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 138(1), pages 103-150.
    5. Goodman-Bacon, Andrew, 2021. "Difference-in-differences with variation in treatment timing," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 225(2), pages 254-277.
    6. Jennifer L. Doleac & Benjamin Hansen, 2020. "The Unintended Consequences of “Ban the Box”: Statistical Discrimination and Employment Outcomes When Criminal Histories Are Hidden," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 38(2), pages 321-374.
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    Cited by:

    1. Burton, Anne M. & Wasser, David N., 2025. "Revisiting the unintended consequences of Ban the Box," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 250(C).

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • J48 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Particular Labor Markets; Public Policy
    • J78 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination - - - Public Policy (including comparable worth)
    • K31 - Law and Economics - - Other Substantive Areas of Law - - - Labor Law

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