Does Amazon Hire Felons? Everything You Need to Know

Evelyn Sanderson - December 13, 2024

When you’re applying for a new position, it’s always important to consider who the company or organization is looking to hire. In this case, we’re answering – does Amazon hire felons? While the short answer is yes, you’ll find that it gets more complicated than that. Amazon may hire some felons, but there are limits to who the company is willing to hire. What’s more, candidates may need to meet other guidelines to be eligible for work with Amazon.

For these reasons, it’s important to look at whether or not Amazon hires felons holistically, which is what we do in this article. Read on to learn everything you need to know about Amazon’s hiring process when it comes to people with felonies. 

What Is Amazon?

Most of us know what Amazon is – it’s a website that allows you to purchase goods and have them shipped right to your door. While that’s what Amazon is at its core, it’s a lot more than that. Amazon is also an innovator in the technology department with things like AWS and Amazon Web Services, which partners with the NFL for better next-gen stats.

You’ll also find that Amazon works with books and in other industries, so you’re not just applying to work for a website. In fact, Amazon hires people to deliver goods, work in warehouses, and much more. 

It’s important to note that some jobs will be eligible for felons, while others won’t. Therefore, the specific role you’ll have at Amazon will determine whether or not you can be hired. Make sure you keep this in mind and check before you start applying.

What Is a Felon?

Before we dive into whether or not Amazon hires felons, it’s important to understand what a felon is. A felon, by definition, is someone who has committed a violent crime and someone who has been convicted of that crime through a plea or admission of guilt. 

Felonies are the most serious type of offense, so you’ll find that the penalties are harsh. People have to live with felonies on their criminal records indefinitely (in some cases), and this can impact the background check process, where someone can work, and even relationships.

While felonies have a lot of rules against them, there are also laws to protect felons.

What Is a Felony?

So, a felon is someone who was convicted of a felony, but what exactly is a felony? A felony, simply put, is one of the worst crimes that someone can commit. They’re worse than both misdemeanors and violations, which is why they often result in hiring implications. 

Felons tend to be associated with the worst crimes including: 

• Assault 
• Rape
• Murder 
• Crimes between adults and minors 
• Grand theft auto 
• Larceny 
• Drug charges 
• Tax fraud or evasion 

These are only a few examples of what types of crimes felonies can be. Due to the severity of these crimes, the sentence is usually more than one year in prison.

How Long Does a Felony Appear on Your Record?

Felonies appear on your record indefinitely, so you’ll have to worry about them for a long time. The only way you can remove them is if you have the case expunged through the court system. You’ll have to hire a lawyer for this process and make sure you can go through the process for the specific crime you committed. For example, murders and other violent or sexual crimes tend to remain on your record permanently, especially in states like Texas. 

While felonies will remain on your record indefinitely, that doesn’t mean they’re always available to employers. For example, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) limits how far back some background checks can go, especially for financial crimes, DUIs, and other records.

So, how long does a felony stay on your record? Ultimately, it depends on the context of the case.

Does Amazon Hire Felons?

Yes, Amazon hires felons. Amazon will take you through a pre-employment background check that reveals a lot of information about you. Information that shows up during the background check ranges from criminal records to civil court records, so there’s a good chance that they’ll find any felonies. 

That said, Amazon has recently committed to its Second Chance Initiative, which is a pledge to hire up to 100,000 employees and many of them can have criminal records. Amazon also adheres to Equal Employment Opportunity Commission guidelines and has publicly announced its intentions to hire some felons with criminal records for non-violent offenses.

While Amazon will find felonies, that doesn’t always mean they’re red flags or that they’ll prevent you from being hired. Ultimately, it depends on the role and the level of responsibility that someone will have.

What Types of Jobs Does Amazon Offer to Felons?

The type of job that you apply for at Amazon plays a big role in whether or not the company will hire you as a felon. That said, there are a few types of jobs at Amazon that are common for felons to be hired for, or at least more common than other roles. Learn more about these positions below.

Warehouse Work 

One of the best ways to get into Amazon as a felon is to start in the warehouse. It’s entry-level work that tends to pay well, and the company is more willing to hire felons at this level to help them get their foot in the door. 

While it doesn’t pay as much as some white-collar work at Amazon, eventually, felons can move up through the company or build experience to work elsewhere. Essentially, it’s a great stepping stone for people to re-enter the workforce with a felony record.

Temporary Jobs or Contract Roles 

Amazon also hires people for temporary roles and positions. These jobs can be in warehouses, shipping offices, and even in customer service. Temporary jobs don’t last forever, hence the name, but they can turn into permanent positions, or employees can use their experience to find more work. 

Ultimately, Amazon uses these jobs to help people get back into the workforce for a short amount of time.

Customer Service Jobs 

For people who don’t have violent felonies on their record, Amazon may hire them for customer service roles. There are support roles or sales roles that allow workers to connect with customers. 

While some felonies may limit who can be hired for these roles, entry-level positions are open for people with a criminal record. That said, many of these jobs may be pop-up or temporary, so keep that in mind.

How to Check Your Record with Information.com 

The best way to apply for Amazon with a felony on your record is to be prepared. You want to be open with your employer if you have to be, but it’s also important to know when you don’t have to disclose something. For example, in many states, background checks may only go back seven years, depending on the crime. Therefore, you may not have to disclose some felonies. Also, you may need to check the status of your felony if you’ve had it expunged. The last you want is for a felony to show up during a background check when it shouldn’t. 

Fortunately, we can help you see what will show up on a background check before you even begin the process. All you need is our criminal records lookup tool and we’ll compile a full report about all of your current and past criminal records.

To begin the process, enter your first and last name, city, and state. Then, begin the search. We may ask for additional identifying information, like relatives or your age, and once you provide those details, we’ll narrow down the results. Once you find yourself, you can open the full report to view all of your criminal records. 

Not only can we help you find criminal records, but we can also help you prepare for job interviews and background checks in different ways. For example, we can ensure that your address information is correct by showing you what state and federal databases have on file. We can also provide details about civil court records, contact information, and much more.

For these reasons, we always recommend working with Information.com if you need clarification or to check your records before applying.

Apply with Confidence Today!

Now that you know Amazon hires felons, you can apply with confidence. Make sure you check the specific role that you’re applying for before you decide to apply to ensure that they accept felons, and be as open as you can about your record for the best results. Being upfront and open is one of the best ways to ease tension and employers tend to like and respect honesty as opposed to you hiding information from them.

Before you apply for work with Amazon, also check your criminal record with one of our people search tools. Learning about your criminal record and what may appear on it will only help you during the process. Plus, our people search tool is a great way to check for any inconsistencies or issues in your records before you send in your application.