Ban the Box in Newark According to the National Employment Law Center (NELP), about 65 million Americans have a criminal record. The rapid expansion of online record searches has made it easier for employers to run background checks on potential employees, and more challenging for potential employees to get a job.

According to a 2010 survey by the Society for Human Resources Management, nearly 90 percent of employers surveyed, revealed that they conducted criminal background checks on job applicants. Ban the Box is a movement to get rid of questions on job applications that ask about criminal history.