Around 100,000 people are released from prison each year

Teesside's probation service says many ex-offenders have high levels of skills and should not be over-looked.

And the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) says 90% of employers in the country are experiencing recruiting difficulties.

It is thought that many employers disregard people with criminal records.

Russell Portues from Teesside's probation service said: "It's in the best interests of employers to look beyond offences to the skills of the person.

'Minority population'

"No-one is suggesting that employers should give offenders jobs out of some altruistic gesture.

"Offenders themselves need to take advantage of the training and skills programs made available to them by the probation service."

Duncan Brown, the assistant director general of the CIPD said: "Employers may be breaking the law because there's a rehabilitation of offenders act which does aim to stop unfair discrimination against ex-convicts and offenders but we're trying to get employers to look beyond this stereotype.

"Obviously, there are certain types of work where legally you can't employ someone with convictions. But for the vast majority, that's not the case."

"About 100,000 people come out of prison every year and about 120,000 are under community supervision in the probation service.

"That's quite a substantial minority population that should be tapped into."