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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 24, 2017)
News Page 4 Street Roots • Nov. 24-Dec. 1, 2017 Time served Portland restaurant groups consider new hires from Oregon prison system W IK IC O M M O N S BY EMILY GREEN executive assistant and relations manager. “They were always on time; no problems.” Pok Pok is partnering with local nonprofit A hen Cala began serving its now- Social Ignition to host the job fair, and acclaimed Mexican cuisine in San organizers are looking for other interested Francisco two years ago, most diners restaurant groups to join them. didn’t know that more than half the restaurant’s They’re encouraging restaurateurs in 50 employees had previously served time in Portland’s food scene with two or more prison. “The truth is, it’s just smart business,” Cala’s establishments to attend the event, which is still in the planning stages and slated for General Manager Emma Rosenbush recently January. told a private audience at Portland’s “What we are not looking for is McDonalds, Laurelhurst Theater. because the guys can walk in there and get a Cala was in a pinch because the cost of living job pretty easily,” said Sonja Skvarla, founder of in the Bay Area had become too expensive for A Social Ignition. “We’re looking for more many service industry workers, she explained - established, very ‘Portland’ restaurants.” but jobseekers coming out of prison were She expects inmates who are within 6 readily available. months of release will make up the bulk of It’s a scenario that’s becoming a reality in attendees at the job fair. Restaurant owners Portland too, as rents continue to outpace and managers who participate will be expected wages. to present their business and be prepared to Rosenbush had been invited to speak to talk to inmates about how to get a job and be Portland-area restaurant industry managers and owners at a screening of “The Return” this past successful in the industry. Men and women reentering society after September. incarceration face many challenges, but if They had come to see the documentary employers partner with a nonprofit that helps about difficulties inmates face when they’re former inmates through the process, it can released from prison - and to learn more about make all the difference, explained Rosenbush. how to hire them. The nonprofit reentry partner can help an The screening sparked plans for a restaurant employer navigate the challenges of working industry night and job fair inside Columbia with formerly incarcerated workers, and help River Correctional Institution, a minimum- them find the right fit for their business. security state prison located in Northeast Cala had to make a few changes to make its Portland. environment more suitable for its staff, such as Leading the effort locally is Andy Ricker’s eliminating the free alcoholic beverage Pok Pok Restaurants, which co-sponsored the employees typically enjoy at the end of each movie screening and has already had success shift at most restaurants. Because many people with two former inmates it hired at its coming out of prison are in recovery, it made Brooklyn, N.Y., location. sense for Cala to prohibit employee drinking on “They were both successful, exemplary site. employees,” said Lindsay Druhot, Ricker’s SENIOR STAFF REPORTER W But the reward of being able to provide people with a second chance has outweighed any sacrifice, Rosenbush said. The film’s co-writer and co-director, Kelly Duane de la Vega, told attendees that when she showed the film inside America’s prisons, what she heard repeatedly was that inmates needed help finding jobs after their release. This inspired her to take one of the film’s mam characters, Bilal Chatman, to movie screenings for business a s®cl®tyr w e a r e n o t h e lp in g owners and a n y b o d y g a l» th e h a n is - e n s h ills managers across th a t th e y a e e d to b e in a a e w c a the country, with stops in New York re e r, T h e r e is a g a p b e tw e e n w h a t City, Los Angeles, w e e ip e e t fr o m In m a te s r e e n t e r in g s o c ie t y a n d w h a t w e p r e p a r e th e m Seattle and Philadelphia. io r / ? After the ~ SOfWA SKVARLA D IR E C TO R , S O C IA L IGNITION screening in Portland, former- inmate Chatman told Street Roots that when the film’s team visited inmates in Oregon’s prisons, they echoed what inmates all over the country were saying: “They wanted more programs, they want more job opportunities when they get out, and they are concerned about rehabilitation and reentry,” he said. Oregon Sen. Michael Dembrow (D-Portland) also spoke at the screening. He said that while Oregon took positive steps forward this past legislative session when it passed a number of bills aimed at helping former inmates reenter society, reentry still remains a “huge See TIME SERVED, page 5
