Justice Champion Spotlight: Nancy Pance, Opportunity Oregon
What is Opportunity Oregon?
Opportunity Oregon is a for-profit employment recruitment agency, specifically working with the currently and formerly incarcerated. We place these individuals as direct hires at our fair chance employer clients. We match them according to their skills, trades, certifications, and experience with employers in the community. We also advocate for the truly rehabilitated in the community and amongst employers. We help to remove the stigma and discrimination with actual statistics and benefits of hiring this untapped pool of talent.
Our recruits have an application process by mail – they send in their completed apps with a state-verified conduct sheet to affirm their good conduct, work ethic and additional programming while inside. We find that a pattern of changed habits inside indicates an aptitude to continue them once released into the community. Our employers pay a recruitment fee, so that we can impact more individuals in the long run. Our qualified applicants come with tax kickbacks, so this lowers that fee to a very small percentage after it is claimed.
Our services are completely free of charge for our recruits, as they already have enough barriers when releasing. In full transparency, only about 20% of the individuals we help are paid contracts. We provide our services to anyone with a criminal record that has employment barriers, as it is the right thing to do. We currently need more employers to jump aboard, not only to keep our mission going, but to broaden the options for our recruits. Our employer clients have a constant stream of employees who have earned skills, trades, and certifications to match our clients’ needs. They have a great reputation for work ethic and attendance, are pre-screened and selected, and are eager and grateful to work.
Additionally, we volunteer at the Oregon State Penitentiary and are providing a career planning class, which helps us share our resources behind bars, in efforts to impact more lives and help beat recidivism.
How did you become involved in Second Chance Hiring work?
I am formerly incarcerated myself and was released almost 13 years ago. I faced the very same barriers that our clients are encountering. I was out on a conditional release and would have had to serve the remainder of my sentence if I did not find employment. I went everywhere, even fast food. I knew I needed to start somewhere, but no one would hire me. I was told by a fast food manager that I was a “liability” because of my crime, which was a robbery. I had changed my life in prison, turned around my work ethic and taken every program available. I will never forget the barriers, judgment, and rejection I faced upon release. I ended up getting permission from my parole officer to attend college rather than gain employment. I decided an education would help me with my future goals and would help make me more qualified for work. I also told myself I would use this degree someday to help better the lives of others who faced the same post-release challenges. I didn’t know how exactly, but I was determined. I received my AAS in Business with specializations in accounting three years later. A call center accepted my employment application not long after graduation, and I worked my way up to the top sales team in two years. My brother suggested we go in on a gym franchise five years after my release, and I have been a gym owner and operator ever since. That longing to help others in my position after release never went away. 11 years after release, we started Opportunity Oregon together. I am able to basically provide the same services I needed back in 2010, and it’s very rewarding to say the least.
How does employment impact the lives of people with criminal records?
Statistics show that ex-offenders have an unemployment rate of over 27%. After three years, ex-offenders who are employed have just a 16% recidivism rate. Unemployed ex-offenders have a 52% recidivism rate. Employment after incarceration gives them purpose, hope, stability and the means to support themselves and their families.
What is the business case for Second Chance Hiring?
We advocate for the truly rehabilitated; each of our applicant verifies their conduct inside prison, their work ethic and the programming they took advantage of. Many of our applicants are obtaining a college education inside and certifications of all types. Our recruits come out with skills and certifications like HVAC, plumbing, welding, auto tech, construction technology, barista, cosmetology, carpentry, electrical, drug and alcohol certifications, hair design, optical and so many more. We know there is a labor shortage and are happy to advocate for this untapped pool of talent, while matchmaking with employers who are hiring for these positions.
You’re also pushing for policy reform like Clean Slate in Oregon — why did you choose to get involved in legislative advocacy?
I am extremely passionate about Clean Slate Oregon. Close to 42% of Oregonians with criminal records are eligible for expungement, but only seven percent are expunged, due to costs and difficulty navigating the system. I believe that if an individual has met the conditions of the state and has remained crime free for a certain number of years, they shouldn’t have to be defined by their past. This will help eliminate barriers, like those to employment and housing. I have faced this discrimination personally and believe that mistakes we made many years ago should not define us indefinitely. Two years ago, I was looking for a rental. I had income, excellent credit, owned two companies and had the best rental references. Yet the crime I committed 15 years ago determined where I could rent, and my options were very limited. There are so many more barriers created by indefinite records, and Clean Slate will help eliminate them.
What impact would Clean Slate have for Oregonians with criminal records?
300,000 Oregonians have met all the conditions of their sentences and are eligible for record clearance. This would provide a solution for them. The impact would be great – not just for those 300,000 but for our economy and communities.
What role do businesses play in creating a fairer and more equal society?
Businesses can create real change by reviewing job applications based on work ethic, skills, trades, and education and how it benefits the position they’re hiring for – not basing their decision on an individual’s past, but by what they are doing now.
What advice would you give business leaders looking to start Second Chance Hiring?
Studies show that workers with criminal records are more productive. Grateful for the opportunity to work, they work hard to prove their worth and loyalty. In other words, providing for ex-offenders is not a handout. Employers who have opened their doors to hire this segment of society have often found them to be the hardest working members of their team. Because finding employment is difficult, studies show that formerly incarcerated people remain employed longer than the average employee. Once hired they are not likely to quit and are highly motivated to become longtime workers. Contrary to common fears, there have been no links found between hiring ex-offenders and an increase in crime, violence, theft, or dishonesty in the workplace. There is also no significant difference in employment termination rates of those with and without criminal records. Hiring the formerly incarcerated strengthens families and communities. More jobs for ex-offenders means less public assistance, more support for their children, and more engaged members of a local economy.
When you are not working, what do you enjoy doing?
I’m usually working, to be honest. I love what I do; running a gym and a recruitment agency keeps me very busy. I do find time every day to wake up an hour earlier than scheduled for my morning routine (and hobby!). I practice yoga and meditation every single day and write out a gratitude list. I also enjoy sharing fitness and meal prep plans on social media, completing different challenges each time. It’s actually really fun because I am keeping myself accountable to my own health goals and helping others with theirs too. I’m a nerd and love to sit in a tea house with a newspaper from time to time.
What is a fact about you that would surprise people?
I changed my legal name after my divorce to Nancy Pance (pronounced pants). It was my brother’s idea, and I laughed all the way home from the courthouse. He told me I could be whoever I wanted to be, and I have chosen to be Nancy Pance. I have never regretted this decision, and it may have been one of the best decisions of my life.