Going off the record

Volume 8 Number 6 June 11 - July 8 2012

Through partnership and shared expertise Jessica Crofts , Gemma Leigh-Dodds and Meghan Fitzgerald are hoping to start off the conversation about irrelevant criminal records discrimination with their Off the Record documentary. Photo: Peter Casamento
Through partnership and shared expertise Jessica Crofts , Gemma Leigh-Dodds and Meghan Fitzgerald are hoping to start off the conversation about irrelevant criminal records discrimination with their Off the Record documentary. Photo: Peter Casamento

For the thousands of people affected by irrelevant criminal records discrimination each year, the past is never really the past. Kate O’Hara looks at a student engagement project trying to turn the tide.

The next job you apply for will probably require a comprehensive resume. You’ll likely be asked to respond to key selection criteria and maybe undertake some job-related tests.

What’s increasingly likely is that your prospective employer will also ask whether you have ever been charged with a criminal offence. What’s less certain – particularly in Victoria – is what information will be released under a criminal record check and what impact that report might have on your employability.

Funded by a Dreamlarge Engagement Grant, a University of Melbourne student engagement project hopes to open up some dialogue around irrelevant criminal records discrimination (CRD) and address a growing issue for community legal advocacy services across the state.

Students Jessica Crofts and Gemma Leigh-Dodds wrapped up production of their documentary project last month with the launch of Off the Record, a DVD highlighting the stories of people affected by CRD.

In partnership with the Fitzroy Legal Service, the project addresses a growing concern for many in the legal profession.

“It’s an issue that’s been around for about 15 years,” says Ms Leigh-Dodds, “but it’s repeatedly shunned because it’s not a politically sexy thing to come out with, that you’re going to be advocating for prisoners’ rights or people with a record.

“Having said that, I think the extent of the problem has deepened in the past few years, with more and more people getting pulled into the criminal system. The issue isn’t discreet anymore, it’s affecting a wide range of people.”

Statistics show there has been a significant increase in the number of criminal record checks undertaken in Victoria, increasing from about 3500 a year in 1993 to more than 186,000 in 2011. In the employment sphere, criminal record checks are fast becoming a routine part of the recruitment process.

Following completion of her Arts/Law degree last year, Ms Leigh-Dodds is now working in the legal sector. From her perspective the value of the DVD is in the way it humanises the issue.

“I think the documentary format really suited the issue. On paper, irrelevant CRD doesn’t seem to be something people can easily connect with. It implies complex, litigious-sounding ideas, so presenting people’s stories and their direct experience is one of the more important ways we can get people to empathise and be open, and to understand how difficult the outcomes can be.”

Edited by former VCA student Vessal Safaei, Off the Record explores how this impact reaches beyond employment and can have a devastating effect on mental health, family, and community. By telling the stories of four people directly affected, including Aboriginal elder Jack Charles from the film Bastardy, Ms Crofts says the DVD clearly shows how broadly the issue is affecting people.

“A potential employer may request a criminal record check, and if a report comes back they usually won’t tell you that’s the reason you’ve been unsuccessful in your job application,” she says.

“A lot of people get knocked out but don’t know why, and we’ve found it’s sometimes down to a minor discretion which they didn’t know was on their record, like fare-evasion or other low-level crimes.”

A key element of the University’s Dreamlarge grant program is meaningful engagement with an external organisation. Through an established relationship with the Fitzroy Legal Service, the project was supported by community representatives, students and academics across a number of universities.

Ms Crofts, who is currently completing her PhD at the University’s Youth Research Centre in the Graduate School of Education, is quick to point out that the project was a considerable joint effort.

“We’re not experts on this topic, other people are, but we wanted to create an environment where this discussion can happen,” she says.

“A lot of people need to come back to this issue. We were really pleased with the final product, and we were pleased that Gem finished her law degree and I started my PhD while we were working on the project. It gave us a chance to go out and put our skills into action.”

The DVD will now be used by Fitzroy Legal Service to support a campaign to influence policy reform. Meghan Fitzgerald, senior lawyer and manager of the social action team at the Service, says this new focus on risk management makes it difficult to move on from a past indiscretion.

“If somebody offends, in many cases it will be a one-off situation and it may reflect a time of crisis, but five years later they might be a very different person,” she says.

“The job market is very competitive now and we have a very high level of risk management and background checking on people. That means the past isn’t really the past - it kind of hangs around.”

Supported by a large volunteer base and with limited resources, Fitzroy Legal Service places great value on the meaningful relationships it has with students, academics and community representatives. Ms Fitzgerald says this project, even though modestly funded by the University’s Engagement and Partnerships Office, has significant impact. She is hopeful of future policy reform but that will largely depend on significant support from community members.

“It impacts a lot of people, so we’re already reaching that stage where nearly everyone knows someone who is affected. If we can pull some of these people into the campaign and make it a less stigmatised area for government to do some reform in, then we have a better chance of getting progressive policy.”

Now that the conversation has started, the Off the Record project team would like to hear your story.

http://offtherecordcampaign.com/
http://www.fitzroy-legal.org.au