Second-chance employment as a “win-win-win”: an innovative stakeholder approach for hospitality practitioners

Abstract

Purpose

Hiring employees with criminal records has become a heightened topic of conversation for hospitality practitioners. The labor shortage in the hospitality industry has increased consideration for individuals impacted by the justice system, bolstered by programming such as second-chance vocational training programs. However, hospitality practitioners with second-chance employment practices have had challenges managing the multiple stakeholder relationships to employ and retain justice-impacted employees. The purpose of this paper is to aid practitioners in the hospitality industry with an innovative and inclusive hiring practice with timely implications in the United States.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper will emphasize the correctional system actors, community-based partners, and justice-impacted employees as salient stakeholders in such hiring contexts. Employing a stakeholder theoretical perspective, we outline a stakeholder map for hospitality practitioners with fair chance hiring practices to better understand second-chance employees.

Findings

Organizations do not sit on the periphery of a community; they are interconnected with the community in many direct and indirect ways. Past research has yet to identify a relationship between stakeholder theory and second-chance employment when the stakeholders involved in this employee population are arguably extended. By providing a stakeholder mapping process second-chance employment context, the interwoven actors’ needs can be more holistically assessed.

Originality/value

In America, individuals with a criminal record are often a forgotten and stigmatized labor pool. With this paper, we aim to break down barriers of bias while encouraging the narrative toward true Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Belonging (DEIB) hiring practices. Multiple stakeholder management is often an organizational challenge, and by providing this framework, we provide guidelines to practitioners while highlighting the opportunity for community leadership. To that end, we provide guidelines for hospitality practitioners intending to increase justice-involved employee retention through stakeholder relationship management.

Citation

Pons, S., Quadri-Felitti, D., Jolly, P.M. and Tews, M.J. (2024), "Second-chance employment as a “win-win-win”: an innovative stakeholder approach for hospitality practitioners", International Hospitality Review, Vol. ahead-of-print No. ahead-of-print. https://doi.org/10.1108/IHR-04-2024-0025

Introduction

In America, more than 65 million individuals have a criminal record (Ali, Lyons, & Ryan, 2017), and 1 in 31 are on probation, parole, or incarcerated (Harding, Morenoff, & Wyse, 2019). Over 700,000 individuals are released annually from incarceration (Harding et al., 2019), and 95% will seek full-time employment opportunities (Young & Powell, 2015). Nevertheless, the unemployment rate for justice-impacted individuals (JII) is five times higher than for non-JII (Sinko, DeAngelis, Alpajora, Beker, & Kramer, 2020). As the hospitality industry battles continuing staffing challenges, some employers have turned to this underemployed and overlooked population. JII face many barriers after release, with employment cited as the most significant barrier. Therefore, although an underexplored area in human resource management (HRM) research, the increasing number of individuals impacted by the justice system has significant implications for hiring practices in the hospitality industry. This makes it a critical and timely subject for reflection and exploration.

Hospitality organizations have many entry-level positions, especially during labor shortages. Historically, JII are typically employed in low-skill, entry-level positions (Harding et al., 2019). A study examining JII employment history showed that the hospitality industry was ranked third most likely to hire these individuals (Harding et al., 2019). The study identified sectors such as accommodations, limited-service eating places, and full-service restaurants as most likely to operate with justice-impacted employees (JIE) (Harding et al., 2019). In the study by Harding et al. (2019), of their 22 study participants, 16 of the jobs obtained by JII were in the hospitality industry, and they reported that hospitality employers were less likely to ask about criminal records. Additionally, the practitioners in the sample tended to forgive past mistakes and provide an entry point into the labor market. To that end, the hospitality industry is a critical context for future research on second-chance employment outcomes.

Justice-impacted employees are defined as employees with criminal records and/or incarceration histories. Research suggests that hiring JII can help organizations address labor shortages and fill typically difficult to fill positions (Young & Powell, 2015), such as those in hospitality. In a study by Minor, Persico, and Weiss (2018), JIE had lower rates of turnover when compared to those without criminal records. As such, second-chance programs serve as an innovative strategy for entry-level staffing (Young, 2022; Korzenik, 2021; Young & Powell, 2015; Minor et al., 2018). Fair-chance hiring, also called second-chance hiring, refers to the active recruitment and employment of JII. As such, second-chance employment programs aim to train, educate, and facilitate job opportunities for those currently and previously incarcerated.

More organizations have implemented second-chance employment practices into their recruitment strategies (e.g. MOD Pizza, Aramark’s IN2Work, and Dave’s Killer Bread), but many hospitality organizations have not widely embraced them. One potential reason is that practitioners are unaware of the management of multiple stakeholders in second-chance employment. Both research and practical insights emphasize the need for strong relationships between stakeholders, such as community-based partners and correctional system actors (Young, 2022). In fact, the effectiveness of stakeholders may be contingent upon their ability to adeptly navigate and adapt to the dynamic shifts in social environments (Marcon-Nora, Alberton, & Ayala, 2023). Individuals released from the American incarceration system face unique requirements from multiple stakeholders to overcome barriers and maintain employment, which exceeds the typical manager-employee relationship.

The statement of purpose of this research note is to (1) apply previous findings of stakeholder theory to the unique requirements of second-chance employment stakeholders, which are critical to the success of these employment practices, and (2) generate a valuable framework for practical and academic applicability. Applying classic methodologies to ideate an innovative approach to this complex employment scenario, this work integrates insights from the nascent second-chance employment literature with extensive research on stakeholder theory to develop the proposed conceptual model. Understanding the stakeholders and the varying responsibilities and requirements is critical to JIE retention for hospitality practitioners. As illustrated in Figure 1, the stakeholder relationships in this context are tightly interwoven and can be defined by the intersection.

Statement of purpose

The present paper develops a framework for the hospitality industry to advance second-chance employment utilizing the following research objectives: (1) conceptualize stakeholder mapping in hospitality organizations, (2) provide a theoretical pathway for scholars to advance research into this complex context, and (3) offer practical guidelines for hospitality practitioners diagraming the interplay between multi-stakeholder relationship management and second-chance employment.

Literature review

Second chance programming

The US correctional system is divided into federally and privately funded facilities, which determine program availability and offerings within each. Reentry and transition services differ in funding, content, approach, and quality across correctional facilities. Federally funded and private programming are typically available in many prisons, with funding ranging from minimal to extensive. Once released, resource access barriers, also called collateral consequences, significantly interfere with the ability to maintain stable employment (Young, 2022). Thus, various processes are in place to provide released individuals access to resources like housing, employment training, support, and ongoing health treatment. One ongoing initiative involves the implementation of second-chance vocational training programs, accessible both within prison facilities and upon release.

Second-chance programs aim to address America's mass incarceration by facilitating the transition from release to employment. Today, one in three Americans have a criminal record, with Black and Latino community figures much higher (Young, 2022). Government-sponsored programming, such as in-prison skill training and career-building activities, was implemented to prepare those released for reentry in the 1960s through the 1980s (Visher, Winterfield, & Coggeshall, 2005). In the 1980s, reduced federal funding interrupted the development and implementation of such programs (Visher et al., 2005). Despite decreased federal funding, a surge in individuals struggling to reintegrate has led to high re-arrest rates in America, perpetuating the prison cycle and increasing recidivism rates—the probability that a previously incarcerated individual will return to prison post-release. As recidivism rates continued rising, community-based partnerships began to form to bolster government-sponsored programming and reduce the barriers to reentry for JII. Second-chance programs can be described as programming designed to connect JII with necessary resources and support for successful reentry upon release. Job training, counseling, and employment placement programs are essential to effective reintegration into society (Haney, 2003). Further, second-chance programs focusing solely on support during the job search processes fail to reduce recidivism due to poor design, skill-set comprehension, and follow-through (Apel, 2011). Thus, second-chance programs that address these shortcomings by combining job search assistance, skill-building, and other support services have been more successful in long-term reintegration (Apel, 2011).

Despite incarceration histories and crime histories, justice-impacted participants in second-chance programs are generally recruited, screened, and enrolled. Once enrolled, participants complete varying curricula depending on the stakeholders sponsoring the program and available resources (Geckeler, Cadena-Igdalsky, Gutierrez, Levin, & Martinez, 2022), such as the opportunity to obtain industry certifications. In one hospitality example, Aramark's In2Work second chance program offers individuals certification in ServSafe, which is nationally recognized for those in culinary careers. In another example, The National Restaurant Association Educational Foundation’s (NRAEF) second-chance program Hospitality Opportunity for People (re)Entering Society (HOPES) focuses on employability and industry-specific culinary training and certifications offered to NRAEF members. Previous research shows that work orientation and readiness strategies must be utilized for program success (Apel, 2011). Using a community collaborative model involving multiple stakeholders, the NRAEF partners with locations’ Department of Corrections, community-based partners, and State Restaurant Associations (SRAs) to connect JII to career opportunities in the hospitality industry. HOPES’s partners utilize the NRAEF’s Restaurant Ready training framework to educate JII on job readiness strategies and restaurant-specific training (NRAEF, 2024). Once a participant completes work-readiness and restaurant-specific training, HOPES connects individuals with employment opportunities and other needed resources to maintain employment. Therefore, a growing number of professionals in the hospitality industry are seizing the chance to hire well-trained individuals actively seeking employment, as exemplified by MOD Pizza, a national restaurant chain and leader in fair-chance employment (Solomon, 2020).

Theoretical framework: stakeholder theory

Stakeholder theory has been an active explanation for organizational success and failure since it was introduced (Freeman, Harrison, & Zyglidopoulos, 2018). Broadly, stakeholders can be defined as the ensemble of actors who can influence or be affected by the organization (Ferrary, 2005), typically by providing the proper resources to ensure good organizational performance (Ribeiro & Gavronski, 2021). Stakeholder theory analyses the organization as an entity enmeshed within a set of interactions between actors inside and outside the organization (Ferrary, 2005). Unlike some management theoretical perspectives, stakeholder theory suggests that the complexity of the world surrounding an organization is significant, emphasizing that successful organizations generate value, not solely financial, for all key stakeholders (Freeman et al., 2018). This paper aims to add to HRM by integrating stakeholder theory into the context of second-chance employment by explicitly outlining the role of correctional system actors, community-based partners, JIE, and hospitality stakeholders of owners, employees, customers, and suppliers. Thus, mapping stakeholder theory to the unique hospitality labor pool is fully justified, bridging academic theory and the practical challenges managers face in complex operations, such as those in hospitality enterprises (Ramoglou, Zyglidopoulos, & Papadopoulou, 2023).

Typically, stakeholders are classified by either primary or secondary, which are outlined during the stakeholder mapping process. Primary stakeholders typically include customers, employees, suppliers, shareholders, and the local communities directly involved in the organization’s value-creating processes (Freeman et al., 2018). Secondary stakeholders typically include local, state, national government officials and regulators, special-interest and consumer advocate groups, nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), media, unions, and competitors (Freeman et al., 2018). While secondary stakeholders, also referred to as “influencer” stakeholders, are not directly involved in the value-creating process of the organization but have a legitimate interest in the organization's success (Freeman et al., 2018). Many organizations now partner with secondary stakeholders due to the range of their community influence, although they may receive less of an organization’s time and attention (Freeman et al., 2018). Thus, in this mapping exercise, primary and two key secondary stakeholders are employed to highlight necessary further research and stakeholder engagement for successful HRM of this labor source. Highlighting stakeholders outside the primarily studied actors highlights the multiple pathways through which to understand second-chance employment.

Stakeholder relationships are more intricate than didactic. As this paper shows, whereas stakeholders interact with each other, the organization is the center of an interconnected value-creating network (Freeman et al., 2018), especially in the context of second-chance employment. Stakeholder theory holds that the dependence on the ongoing management of relationships between all stakeholders (Ribeiro & Gavronski, 2021) is the practitioner’s responsibility. That is, managing stakeholders calls for crafting relationships in which all stakeholders “win” (Freeman et al., 2018). Since stakeholder theory centers around involvement, it requires adequate alignment and understanding of shared values between the organization and the stakeholders. Sensitivities and stigmas around JIE make this alignment, understanding, and involvement even more critical and multi-layered for hospitality practitioners. Stakeholder involvement is particularly vital in the hospitality industry. That is, stakeholders are involved with the base, resources, and organizational structure (Ribeiro & Gavronski, 2021).

Stakeholder management aims to build alliances around convergent interests (Ferrary, 2005), however, stakeholder mapping can become complicated when stakeholders hold multiple roles (Freeman et al., 2018). A stakeholder-oriented manager will attempt to make decisions that are beneficial to one or more stakeholders without hurting others (“win” decisions) (Freeman et al., 2018). Research has found that developing a stakeholder culture represents an opportunity for an organization to differentiate itself from competitors (Freeman et al., 2018). Blending second-chance employment practices into stakeholder culture, hospitality practitioners can innovate past competitors while contributing to the local community.

Innovative stakeholder approach

Despite a few anecdotal success stories, there are HRM challenges, second-chance hiring practices, and JIE retention. There has been scarce research in the field of HRM on second-chance employment and retention. This topic presents a chance for research to align with practical applications by identifying all relevant stakeholders in second-chance hiring. Freeman et al. (2018) suggested that a stakeholder map framework can help organizations pinpoint specific stakeholders and their needs and interests when developing second-chance employment practices. Currently, organizations face increasingly diverse and often interdependent stakeholders; a stakeholder mapping approach enables organizations to be more successful by identifying relevant stakeholders and their interests and developing the necessary managerial capability (Freeman et al., 2018).

The following sections delineate the stakeholders in organizations implementing second-chance employment practices and specify their needs and interests. In the case of hospitality organizations and employing JII, the stakeholder landscape is even more multifarious, and the present work addresses retention challenges by mapping the needs and interests of three critical stakeholders (e.g. correctional system actors, community-based partners, and JIE). This research note identifies three major stakeholder groups, each with multiple actors, needed to implement second-chance employment practices, promote JIE retention, and identify hospitality practitioners’ roles and expectations.

The justice-impacted employee

Recognizing the unique experiences of JIE is crucial for identifying the most relevant stakeholders to map within a particular organization. Long-term employment can create financial security, structure, routine, social networks, and self-esteem for JII (Bennett & Amundson, 2016). Ultimately, JIE must demonstrate the motivation and self-determination to carve a path toward becoming productive members of society. In addition, JIE must openly communicate and disclose commitments such as housing curfews, therapy meeting times, or court appointments to meet the expectations of community-based partners, ensuring their success within the organization and beyond.

In addressing the multifaceted challenges of reentry, it becomes imperative to acknowledge the profound impact of the justice system on individuals, particularly in terms of their unique mental health experiences. Beyond the already high needs during reentry, individuals impacted by the justice system grapple with the negative mental health effects of incarceration. Liem and Kunst (2013) found that individuals previously incarcerated are likely to have post-incarceration syndrome (PISD), a distinct subtype of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (van Willigenburg, 2020). PISD is a symptom present in incarcerated and released prisoners caused by prolonged incarceration in environments of punishment (van Willigenburg, 2020). Therefore, employers must undergo education and cultivate cultural awareness regarding the repercussions of the justice system, including understanding conditions like PISD.

The JIE is central to the mapping process. Nevertheless, organizations with second-chance hiring practices have been demonstrated to have a beneficial trickle-down effect on multiple stakeholders. Indeed, employment goes beyond fulfilling the transactional needs of various stakeholders; it serves as a platform for the effective rehabilitation of JII. In a study by Leverentz (2006), JII demonstrated a willingness and desire to work and considered it central to their self-concept. Moreover, organizations derive advantages and address additional stakeholder requirements through adequately staffed operations and improved retention rates. In fully staffed operations, JIE can contribute to alleviating staffing-related challenges prevalent in the current labor market.

The correctional system actors

The correctional system actors refer to a diverse array of individuals operating within the justice system who engage with justice-involved individuals. This includes parole and probation officers, sheriffs, court personnel, and professionals responsible for administering and overseeing the correctional process. These actors play pivotal roles in managing, supervising, and making decisions that influence the lives and rehabilitation of individuals within the justice system. In a broad sense, hospitality practitioners adopting second-chance hiring contribute to fulfilling the US correctional system's goal of reducing recidivism and fostering law-abiding citizens. Employment is often a condition of release, and losing employment can violate parole. Community release (i.e. probation/parole) comes with conditions such as random drug tests, strict curfews, approval for travel, and random house, work, and phone visits from state agents (Young, 2022). Correctional system stakeholders’ needs are dependent and conditional based on the kind of employment for the released individual. An example of how this stakeholder could impact the organization would be individuals who must wear ankle monitors while on the job, those whose shifts must end to meet preset curfews, or gaining approval to travel for work out of the jurisdiction.

To guarantee relevant stakeholders' satisfaction, practitioners should collaborate transparently with all parties, including the correctional system actors. Employers need crystal-clear communication for the JIE to meet the needs of correctional system stakeholders. Further, the requirements of this stakeholder may vary by employee and jurisdiction, thus entailing individualized management on the part of other stakeholders such as community partners and employers. Meeting the needs of correctional system actors can increase JIE retention at the employer while concurrently helping to reduce recidivism rates.

Community-based partners

The high cost of incarceration strains an individual's social capital, which is why community-based partnerships have been established to provide necessary reentry resources. JII experience collateral consequences, such as barriers to employment, business licensing, housing opportunities, transportation, and other rights and opportunities. Among employment-related barriers, JII often lack recent job experience, prominent work history gaps, fewer job-related skills, little formal education, and transportation-related difficulties (Bennett & Amundson, 2016). Community-based stakeholders are missioned to bridge the gap between JII and resulting collateral consequences and educate employers on these difficulties.

Once released, JII must secure access to basic needs and workplace necessities, including transportation, clothing, and cell phones. For some released, these challenges can seem like fighting a losing battle. For example, an individual must provide proof of residence to get a state-issued identification card. To start a bank account, an individual must provide state-issued identification. Since the justice-impacted individual cannot provide documentation to obtain a state-issued identification card or bank account, housing and employment are reentry necessities but also a conundrum. Hence, community-based stakeholders play a crucial role in securing basic needs. For long-term employment retention, it has been found that substantial and sustained community-based support is needed for JII (Harding et al., 2019). Incarcerated individuals transition from a position of zero control to a world with total control; many report being overwhelmed by financial, housing, transportation, and employment obligations (Hyde et al., 2022). Subsequently, post-release success often depends on the offerings, quality of services, and support the local community provides. In the case of an individual incarcerated for multiple years, they must obtain government identification, housing, employment, transportation, clothing, and food supplies upon release. JIE use community-based resources to find support for housing- and transportation-related costs (e.g. car registration, bus pass) and more. Community-based partnerships connect JII with health and social-related services. With many individuals released from incarceration having substance use disorder, community-based partnerships aid in connecting individuals to their needed resources for substance abuse recovery (e.g. Alcoholics Anonymous (AA).

Community-based partner stakeholders benefit from individuals successfully utilizing their services and positively contributing to the community. This symbiotic relationship extends to hospitality organizations, which stand to gain from collaborations with community-based partners that facilitate job placement for JII. This mutually beneficial stakeholder relationship addresses the placement needs of community-based partners and plays a central role in the reentry process. Moreover, the alliance between organizations and community-based partners contributes to the well-being of correctional system actors by reducing recidivism rates through the retention of JIE. In essence, a motivated organization actively engages with local community-based resources, optimizing opportunities to enhance the overall well-being of all employees involved in the reentry process.

Discussion and implication

Practical implications

American organizations are well-positioned to engage in positive efforts to alleviate the consequences of mass incarceration (Young, 2022). For hospitality practitioners with second-chance hiring practices, it is necessary to consider correctional system actors, community-based partners, and JIE as stakeholders. As Young (2022) described, organizations should be aware of the supplementary requirements from stakeholders such as community-based partners, correctional system actors, and this employee population. These requirements may impact performance, well-being, attendance, and appearance standards. Organizations that can accommodate JII requirements (e.g. parole requirements, court day absences, transportation challenges) may provide a sense of workplace security (Kiazad, Holtom, Hom, & Newman, 2015). For example, transportation is cited as a common barrier to maintaining employment. A motivated organization could strategically develop work schedules to accommodate bus schedules or provide taxi coupons (Young, 2022). Likewise, schedule flexibility to accommodate court and/or probation appearances would allow JIIs to meet their obligations to both the organization and correctional system actors. Therefore, it is beneficial for practitioners to acknowledge and communicate community resources to assist JIE in achieving employment success. A clear line of communication is needed between organizations and JIE. JIE are recommended to disclose ongoing, reoccurring requirements of the correctional system actor and community-based partners. A transparent employer-employee relationship will mutually benefit all stakeholders defined in this note and the organization alike.

In this approach, an inclusive mindset refers to the flexibility and consideration of the multiple ways applicants can provide value to organizations (Young, 2022). In addition to engaging in open dialogue with JIE, practitioners must cultivate an inclusive mindset that comprehensively understands these individuals' life experiences and barriers. Practitioners build relationships and practice mentorship in climates led by an inclusive mindset. Research by Anazodo, Ricciardelli, and Chan (2019) implied that workplaces should employ mentorship opportunities, personal coaching, supportive coworker interactions, and offer resource groups to JIIs to ease their socialization into the workplace and create an environment of inclusion.

One promising avenue for creating inclusive environments for JIE is reentry simulation. Reentry simulation training is another way organizations can understand the significant obstacles individuals face in navigating the correctional system upon their release from incarceration and returning home to their communities (Moak, Walker, Earwood, & Towery, 2020). In this training, individuals are assigned roles as JIIs and must role-play several weeks in the life of a newly-released JII. Such training can increase empathy in those working with JIE, and this empathy is important because the psychological mechanisms used to adjust to incarceration become dysfunctional in any other context (Schnittker & John, 2007). While incarcerated, individuals often feel infantilized, and their degraded conditions repeatedly remind them of their compromised social status as prisoners, resulting in a diminished sense of self-worth (Haney, 2003). Most notably, feelings of alienation are prevalent in the workplace, where JII lack a sense of belonging and perceive the risk of failure at any moment. Moreover, understanding the psychological impact of incarceration on individuals and addressing feelings of alienation in the workplace can be pivotal in promoting a more inclusive and supportive work environment for JII. Thus, adding reentry simulations to the training curriculum can further increase an understanding of the unique challenges of JIE among other employees and managers.

Another avenue for incorporating JIE is to encourage disclosure. Employers have long discouraged employees from revealing their social identity in the workplace, yet current research shows that organizations can benefit by encouraging self-disclosures from traditionally stigmatized groups by creating an environment of openness and value (Kulik, Bainbridge, & Cregan, 2008). Successful hospitality employers that openly welcome the social identities of JIE may encourage a sense of job security and stability among them. Indeed, a study by Sinko et al. (2020) found that JIE continued employment with organizations that created cultures wherein individuals could be themselves. By creating inclusive, welcoming environments that focus on what employees can do instead of what they have done, hospitality organizations may be able to attract and retain a greater number of individuals than previously thought.

In sum, hospitality practitioners adopting second-chance hiring practices should recognize correctional system actors, community-based partners, and JIE as integral stakeholders. Understanding these stakeholders' additional requirements is crucial for organizational success (Young, 2022). An inclusive mindset, encompassing flexibility and consideration for applicants' diverse values, is paramount. In addition to engaging in open dialogue, practitioners should actively build relationships and mentor JII, supported by research advocating for mentorship opportunities and supportive workplace interactions (Anazodo et al., 2019). Furthermore, incorporating reentry simulation training into the curriculum enhances understanding of the unique challenges faced by JIE (Moak et al., 2020). Addressing these multifaceted aspects is integral to successfully integrating JII and the organization's overall success and well-being.

Theoretical implications and future research

Increasing understanding of second-chance employment in the hospitality industry has several important potential theoretical implications. First, research in hospitality has traditionally investigated recruiting, retention, and employee turnover from the perspective of “traditional” employees who experience “normal” push and pull factors such as work attitudes, supervisor behaviors, and HR practices such as pay (Park & Min, 2020). While these factors are also important to JII, some research suggests that in low-skill, low-wage positions, individuals in second-chance employment programs may exhibit higher levels of performance as well as lower levels of turnover (Minor et al., 2018) when compared to non-justice-impacted counterparts. This suggests that justice involvement may operate as a boundary condition to the current understanding of the factors that drive hospitality employee performance and retention and points to a need to better integrate existing theories of performance and turnover with theories from other domains, such as stigma theory (Goffman, 1963).

For example, job embeddedness has been a key framework for understanding retention in the hospitality industry (Robinson, Kralj, Solnet, Goh, & Callan, 2014) through its examination of fit, links, and sacrifice as forces binding individuals to jobs or employers. However, the factors that create fit for JII may differ significantly from those that create fit for non-JII. JII may view training not only as preparation for their job, but also as a path to reintegration into society and a way to avoid recidivism (Bahn, 2011) – this leads to a question of whether engagement with training and training transfer might be stronger among JII than non-JII due to differing sources and levels of motivation to learn and perform on the job. Likewise, non-JII may feel they would sacrifice very little by changing jobs. In contrast, JII might be less willing to leave an organization that has explicitly committed to a second-chance hiring program, creating a higher level of embeddedness for JII and thus reducing turnover.

The present work aims to provide a stakeholder map for HRM practitioners of the critical parties involved in the employee hiring and retention process for JIE. However, a few other stakeholders are involved in the more holistic context of JIE – for example, the guest and coworker stakeholder perspectives are also ripe for future research. Guests may have limited knowledge of employees' backgrounds in a hospitality context, and future research could explore guests' perceptions when they know that the employees are justice-impacted. Likewise, the coworker’s role remains a fruitful area for future research. Many of the recommendations in this note require awareness, openness, and connections between JIE and others; thus, future research could explore the influence of coworker interpersonal connections’ effect during the socialization phase.

Increasing the degree to which hospitality organizations embrace second-chance hiring might also provide opportunities to explore interdisciplinary questions, such as how local recidivism rates decrease when hospitality organizations create second-chance programs, which could create collaboration between researchers in hospitality, criminology, and sociology. Moreover, questions surrounding the expansion of the labor force and its impacts on local economies would be fruitful avenues for future research – when more individuals can access labor markets, this should have a positive effect on consumer spending and related markets in a particular locale (if second-chance programs are of sufficient scale). Finally, hospitality HR research has long adopted the perspective of either the employer or the employee and corresponding organization-level or individual-level outcomes, with little consideration for other stakeholders in that process. Second-chance hiring, as indicated in the present stakeholder mapping model, creates an opportunity for hospitality HR research to explore a multi-faceted, community-centric approach to research, like how tourism research has long incorporated the views of multiple stakeholders (Sautter & Leisen, 1999). Ultimately, employee retention is a win-win-win scenario for all stakeholders: the correctional actors, community-based partners, JIE, and hospitality practitioners.

Conclusion

Hospitality organizations do not sit on the periphery of a community; they are interconnected with it in many direct and indirect ways (Young, 2022), therefore, considering that one in thirty-one Americans is on probation, parole, or incarcerated (Harding et al., 2019), hiring JII has become a necessity for many of these organizations. However, little to no research has considered the experience of JIE or the organizations that hire them in the hospitality industry. The primary conclusion of the present work is that more research is needed to understand how to attract, hire, and retain JIE, given that existing work in the broader HR literature indicates that these employees can be a reliable and long-term investment for employers.

In conclusion, the research objectives were met by successfully conceptualizing stakeholder mapping within hospitality organizations, offering a foundational framework that enriches our understanding of the stakeholder relationships. By providing a theoretical pathway, it invites scholars to delve deeper into the complexities and encourages further research that can build on this groundwork. Additionally, the study presents practical guidelines for hospitality practitioners, emphasizing the significance of diagraming multi-stakeholder relationships to enhance second-chance employment practices. It is anticipated that hospitality practitioners will implement impactful strategies provided in this research note, such as engaging in collaboration with stakeholders (Geckeler et al., 2022; Apel, 2011), conducting justice-impacted focused DEIB training (e.g. reentry simulation training, Moak, 2020), and providing personalized mentorship to enhance retention rates of justice-impacted employees (Young, 2022; Ali et al., 2017; Bennett & Amundson, 2016). These contributions collectively offer valuable insights and tools for both academic and practical advancements in the hospitality industry by underlining the critical interplay between stakeholder management and inclusive employment. Ultimately, increased retention rates at hospitality organizations will decrease community recidivism rates. Now, that is a win-win-win!

Figures

Figure 1

Second-chance stakeholder visualization

Declaration of interest statement: The authors report that there are no competing interests to declare.