Does Randstad USA hire people with felonies?

What Randstad USA has said

Randstad USA, the U.S. staffing business of the Dutch company Randstad N.V., runs Hire Hope, a program it describes as offering career-readiness training, a paid apprenticeship and job placement to people facing career barriers, with second-chance opportunities among its eligibility considerations. Randstad USA says it introduced second-chance programs in 2023, and Randstad's 2026 sustainability report says Randstad US collaborates with the Second Chance Business Coalition, which lists the parent, Randstad NV, as the member. Screening depends on the client and job: Randstad says it handles background checks and drug tests to fit each employer's needs, and some postings require them while one says none are needed. Fair-chance wording in the postings we sampled appeared only in California and Pennsylvania.

• Second-chance hiring program

  Randstad USA's Hire Hope page describes a program of career-readiness training led by employee volunteers, a 12-week paid apprenticeship and placement in a temporary or permanent job, and lists second-chance opportunities first among its other eligibility considerations, along with youth aging out of foster care and survivors of homelessness, domestic violence, exploitation and human trafficking. The page doesn't define second-chance opportunities.¹

• Company statement

  Randstad USA's EDI&A report page says that in 2023 it introduced initiatives such as second-chance programs, and that its business resource groups were expanding, for example to focus on workers or advocates of people previously impacted by the justice system.²

• Parent company statement

  Randstad's 2026 report on local sustainability initiatives says Randstad US collaborates with the Second Chance Business Coalition to expand job opportunities and describes Hire Hope as a six-month career readiness program open to all.³

• Parent company is a Second Chance Business Coalition member

  The Second Chance Business Coalition lists Randstad NV, Randstad USA's Dutch parent, as a member. The coalition's April 2022 release names Randstad among companies that had recently joined.⁴

• Parent company

  Randstad's U.S. press releases describe Randstad North America, Inc. as a wholly owned subsidiary of Randstad N.V.⁵

• Local fair-chance notice

  California postings we read cite the San Francisco and Los Angeles County fair-chance ordinances, the California Fair Chance Act and the City of Los Angeles ordinance, and Pennsylvania postings say any background check would be assessed individually against the person's record and the job. We didn't see either line on postings from other states.⁶

Does Randstad USA do background checks?

Randstad USA runs background checks for some roles. Randstad's FAQ tells employers that each client's needs differ and that it administers federal and local background checks and a range of drug tests. Some postings require a background check, such as an assembly job in Milford, Connecticut that requires a criminal background check and drug screening; one part-time office job in Portsmouth, New Hampshire says no lengthy screenings or background checks are required. Randstad's candidate privacy notice lists background check providers among the sources of applicant data. Randstad doesn't say when checks happen or name a screening company.^7,8,9,10

• Criminal history
• Drug screen

• How long a background check takes

Does Randstad USA drug test?

Randstad USA drug tests for some roles. Randstad tells employers it offers a variety of drug testing options to match each client's needs. Some postings require a drug screen, such as assembly jobs in Milford, Connecticut and Elizabethtown, Kentucky and a mailroom job in Charlotte, North Carolina; most postings we read don't mention testing.^7,11,12

Hiring programs

• Hire Hope

  A Randstad USA program of career-readiness training led by Randstad employee volunteers, a 12-week paid apprenticeship and placement in a temporary or permanent job with six months of support. Eligibility lists second-chance opportunities among the barriers it considers, along with foster care, homelessness, domestic violence and trafficking. The Hire Hope page puts the two 12-week stages at 24 weeks in all.¹

• Transcend

  A Randstad USA training program that takes a new group of participants twice a year, with paths in account management, financial services, technology and non-clinical healthcare and work-based learning with Randstad clients; participants need internet access and a computer. Its eligibility list includes second-chance opportunities among other career barriers.¹³

Rules for specific jobs

• Assignments with client companies

  Randstad says it tailors pre-employment screening to each employer's needs, so whether a background check or drug test is required can change from one assignment to the next. Check the posting and ask your recruiter.⁷

• Jobs in Pennsylvania

  The Pennsylvania postings we read say any background check would be an individualized assessment based on the person's specific record and the duties of the job.¹⁴

• Commercial drivers in DOT-regulated jobs (federal rule)

  Federal rules require a verified negative drug test before a CDL driver first performs safety-sensitive work for an employer.¹⁵

Your rights, and how far back a check can go

• Under the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA), an employer must get your written permission before it gets a background report about you from a background screening company.^20,21,22
• Before an employer decides not to hire, keep, or promote you because of something in a background report, it must give you a copy of the report and a document called "A Summary of Your Rights Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act."^20,21
• You have the right to dispute inaccurate or incomplete information in your background report directly with the company that made it.^20,23
• The FCRA's seven-year limit does not apply to criminal convictions, so under federal law a conviction can show up on a background report no matter how old it is.^24,25
• Under the FCRA, background and credit reports generally cannot include arrest records, civil lawsuits, or civil judgments that are more than seven years old (or older than the statute of limitations, if that is longer).^24,26

Your full background check rights

Before you apply

• You can ask a background screening company for the information it has on you, and the CFPB keeps a list of consumer reporting companies, including employment screening companies, with their contact details.^20,23,27
• According to the Clean Slate Initiative, 14 states and Washington, D.C. have passed Clean Slate laws that meet its criteria for automatically clearing eligible records: Pennsylvania, Utah, New Jersey, Connecticut, Michigan, Delaware, Virginia, California, Oklahoma, Colorado, Minnesota, New York, Illinois, and Missouri, plus D.C.²⁸
• The Federal Bonding Program, run by the U.S. Department of Labor, lets states give employers free fidelity bonds that protect them against losses from a newly hired worker's dishonest acts, for job seekers with past justice involvement or in recovery from substance use.^29,30

See whether you can clear your record in your state