The Table: interview coaching for the hiring chair
Prepare to interview people returning from incarceration, in recovery, leaving the military or living with a disability: what you may and may not ask, the mistake most employers make, practice from both chairs, and a structured interview you can print.
Built from The legal rails for each group as of October 2026 (ADA, EEOC arrest and conviction guidance, Indiana Code 35-38-9-10 on expunged records), structured-interview evidence (Sackett et al., 2022; Kuncel et al., 2013) and if-then commitments (Gollwitzer and Sheeran, 2006)
Five population briefs, seven hiring-chair modules, every scenario the candidates practice, and a four-step interview builder that prints a scored guide. Everything you build stays on your device; nothing is sent to Invest Hamilton County.
You are on Free. 1 of 4 tools in Find and recruit are open to you. See what the other 3 add.
Preparing to interview
Someone in recovery from substance use
Preparing for someone else? Someone with a criminal record · A veteran or military spouse · Someone with a disability · A mixed pool, or I'm not sure yet
The rails What you may not ask
- Are you in treatment or recovery? Treatment history is a disability inquiry and is off limits before a conditional offer.
- What medications do you take? Prescribed treatment medication, including buprenorphine, methadone and naltrexone, is protected under the ADA (EEOC, 2020).
- Anything that turns a routine drug screen into a medical conversation with an interviewer. Results route through a medical review officer, not through you.
The rails What you may ask
- Whether the candidate can perform the essential functions of the job, with or without a reasonable accommodation.
- Current illegal drug use, which is not protected.
- Attendance, reliability, and performance expectations, applied identically to everyone.
General information for interview preparation as of October 2026, not legal advice. Your employment counsel owns your policies.
Avoid this The mistake most employers make
A drug-testing policy that automatically fails anyone on prescribed medication-assisted treatment. This is the most common quiet failure in recovery-friendly employment nationally: it punishes exactly the people whose recovery is most stable and best supervised, and it is the fact pattern most likely to produce the ADA claim you feared. Audit your policy against your MRO process before it fires, not after.
Instead What actually predicts performance
The same structured interview that predicts for everyone. Recovery status tells you nothing about job performance and you are not entitled to it. Attendance and performance standards, applied uniformly, are both lawful and sufficient.
Worth knowing The evidence
Contact with people in recovery reduces stigma more effectively than education alone (Corrigan 2012; Livingston 2012), which is why IHC delivers this as brief in-person remarks at employer events rather than as a course.
What is actually available to you
- Wellness Council of Indiana holds the state's Recovery Friendly Workplace designation. That is the front door, and it is a process rather than a check.
- Recovery Works (Indiana DMHA) funds treatment for justice-involved candidates, which stabilizes the hire.
- Federal Bonding applies here too.
Both chairs Practice the moment
Reading the other chair is the fastest empathy training there is, and it is free.
Before you move on: one if-then
Before my next hire starts, when I would normally just run the standard drug screen,
I will… pick one or write your own
Stays on this device. Never sent to us. See all your commitments
Naming a specific if-then plan improves follow-through by a medium-to-large margin over holding the same goal without one (Gollwitzer and Sheeran, Implementation Intentions and Goal Achievement: A Meta-Analysis of Effects and Processes, 2006; update Sheeran, Listrom and Gollwitzer, 2024).
The Table in Alex for Business · alexhamiltoncounty.com · General information as of October 2026, not legal advice.
The Table gives general information and coaching support. It is not legal advice and creates no attorney-client relationship. It never screens, assesses or treats anything. For your own situation, including expungement, licensing or what you must disclose in a regulated field, talk to a licensed attorney. Free and low-cost help: Indiana Legal Services, the Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic, and your local public defender's reentry program. In danger now: 988, 911, or the Indiana Child Abuse Hotline at 1-800-800-5556. Facts current as of October 2026.
Programs that fit this work
Add roles to your set and these rank to your own hiring. Eligibility is set by each program, not by us.
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Wagner-Peyser Employment Services DWD Federal
Free job matching, career services, and labor market resources for job seekers through WorkOne centers. Helps employers find workers and job seekers find jobs.
Who qualifies: Universal access, ALL job seekers and employers, no requirements. Free.
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On-the-Job Training (OJT) · WorkOne WorkOne Federal
WorkOne reimburses employers up to 50% of a new employee's wage during a contracted training period. Minimum wage: $13.50/hr for adults, $11/hr for youth. WorkOne pre-screens and refers qualified candidates.
Who qualifies: Participant must be WIOA Adult/Dislocated Worker eligible. Employer: public, nonprofit, or private sector. Must not show pattern of failing to retain OJT worker…
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Youth Work Experience (WEX) · WorkOne WorkOne Federal
Places youth ages 16-24 in employer worksites at ZERO cost to the employer. WorkOne pays all wages and workers' compensation. Youth attend weekly career workshops. Hamilton County contact: Dorothee Cooke.
Who qualifies: Youth meeting WIOA Youth eligibility. In-School: 14-21. Out-of-School: 16-24. Must be low-income (ISY) or face barriers (OSY).
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Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC) DWD/IRS Federal
Federal tax credit for hiring people from certain groups, such as veterans, SNAP recipients and people with a conviction. It applies only to people who began work on or before December 31, 2025. Congress has not renewed it for later hires as of September 2026.
Who qualifies: Employer hires from targeted groups. Ten target groups under 26 USC 51(d) (veterans are split into five sub-groups with different wage caps), including: TANF re…
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Federal Bonding Program USDOL/DWD Federal
Free fidelity bonds ($5,000-$25,000) for employers hiring individuals with barriers: ex-offenders, individuals in recovery, poor credit history, or dishonorable discharge. Covers first 6 months of employment.
Who qualifies: At-risk individuals: ex-offenders, poor credit/bankruptcy, recovering substance abusers, dishonorable discharge, lacking work history, TANF recipients.
Analyst Coach
Ask about the local labor market in plain language, on top of your dashboards. Answers carry their sources and point to the tools for the math. It is an AI coach, your chats are private, and they are never used to train anything.
In crisis? Call or text 988, free, 24/7.
Built by Alex, the Hamilton County Data Hub, from BLS wage records, Census commuting and business patterns, O*NET skill profiles, and licensed Lightcast postings. Wages are set by employers. Ranges, never promises.