Low unemployment rates across the country are forcing some employers to hire ex-convicts to fill needed positions. In Columbia, Missouri, where unemployment is below one percent, ex-convicts are filling positions from sales clerks in department stores to kitchen assistants in local restaurants.
Social scientists say ex-prisoners who gain employment are less likely to commit crimes again.
The agreement, which is expected to be formally signed and made public within two weeks, marks a coup for Boeing in penetrating expanding niche markets at low-fare carriers. The Highway Patrol is looking for a few good men, women. The number of Missouri Highway Patrolmen with more than eight years of experience has decreased to only 34 out of 479. The state highway patrol reports that the number of applicants to the training academy is also down. The patrol cited stress and low pay as possible reasons for the decrease in officers.