Fitness industry has grown a lot in the past few years. With more people taking up health more seriously, fitness chains have benefited.
If you have interest working in fitness centers or gyms then you might find a job opportunity at Planet Fitness but do they hire felons? Let’s have a look.
Does Planet Fitness hire felons?
Yes. Planet Fitness hires felons for certain roles but not for all. Some roles don’t require background checks as well.
Most Planet Fitness centers are franchise owned and the hiring decisions are made by the management of that particular branch. There is no organization level policy regarding hiring of felons. The hiring is handled on a case by case basis.
Some factors that can impact hiring decisions are
Nature of offense – felons convicted for violent crimes like assault, burglary or arson might not be preferred in the hiring process.
Nature of the job – people with criminal background will most likely not get considered for management roles and overnight roles
Does Planet Fitness run background checks?
Planet Fitness runs background checks but not for all roles. Certain roles like trainers and management positions require background checks while others don’t. All night time roles require background checks.
Does Planet Fitness conduct drug tests?
Planet Fitness doesn’t conduct drug tests as a part of their pre-employment process. They don’t have any annual drug tests for employees.
How to get hired at Planet Fitness with a felony record?
Planet Fitness claims to be the fastest growing fitness chain with more than 2000 locations across all the 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, Canada, Panama and Mexico.
They provide employee benefits like term insurance, paid holidays and free membership. One of the best things about working at Planet Fitness is that you can start with an entry level position and work your way up within a few years if you can impress the management.
Some of the entry level positions felons can apply for are
Gym staff – Gym staff handles new member sign ups by giving them gym tours and helping them complete joining formalities.
Member service representatives – It’s a front desk position. The main responsibility of a representative is to handle phone calls and sell gym merchandise like energy drinks and protein supplements.
Custodian – custodian is responsible for maintaining the gym premises. They take care of hygiene and waste management also. There are both daytime and nighttime custodian roles but nighttime roles require a background check.
If you wish to work at Planet Fitness you can start by visiting their career portal. Both corporate and health club job openings are listed on the career portal.
Once shortlisted, you will be called for a personal interview with the manager of the location.
Questions are usually about past work experiences and about how you will handle particular situations like “how will you handle an unhappy customer”. The interview is short and casual mostly. The entire hiring process mostly takes less than a week.
Final thoughts
Finding a job can be a challenging task for felons. There have been a lot of good initiatives taken by the government as well as big corporations to make it easier for felons to find a job. Ban-the-Box campaign and fair chance pledge are some of them.
Still, background checks leave most felons ineligible for most jobs. Lack of employable skills and financial distress are some other factors that impact the job prospects of felons.
Fitness industry is one of the fastest growing industries. Most roles don’t require fancy college degrees and felons can easily get such opportunities and work their way up in the industry.
As a felon, each opportunity is important and you should apply for as many jobs as possible.