The Ridiculous Stigma Over Hiring Recovered Addicts

An addict knows how to relentlessly run through walls.

I did a project in maybe 2019 for an agency working with a HR Tech company to get them to hire more people with criminal records, including former addicts. Just for clarity, I’m not talking about people still in the throes of addiction. I know all too well what that can be like. I wouldn’t recommend hiring those people, no. But if someone has been through addiction and even been through a section of the criminal justice system, and they’re “reformed” and wanting a chance, they deserve one. Stigma is ridiculous in the U.S., because virtually everyone is an at-will employee anyway. So if you hire a former addict and he or she relapses and you aren’t comfortable with their performance, go fire them. It’s your right as an employer, ya know?

I’ve been a messy drunk on and off for about 22 years:

21 Days Sober: 12 Worst Drunks, 12 More Steps

I can tell you that, if you want to grab a beer and lack the means or ability to do so for some reason, you will run through a goddamn wall to get that beer.