Having a pot-related arrest or conviction used to be a liability for Illinoisans seeking employment. Now, a criminal record might lead to a job in the legal industry.

HempStaff, a Miami-based recruitment and training agency, launched a new division last month to help cannabis firms in Illinois and five other states hire employees that meet certain social equity requirements, including those with pot offenses on their records.

A news release from HempStaff said the company hopes to help those folks “find their dream opportunities.” But there’s also benefits for employers.

Under Illinois’ legalization law, budding “ganjapreneurs” vying for licenses to sell and grow recreational weed can get an edge in the application process if most of their employees have been arrested for or convicted of a cannabis offense that’s eligible for expungement, live in an area “disproportionately impacted” by past drug policies or have an affected family member.

Arrest records for possession of less than 30 grams of cannabis — which will soon be the legal limit — can be automatically expunged under the law. For cases involving between 30 and 500 grams, individuals will need to petition the court for expungement.

HempStaff will assist Illinois firms hoping to hire workers that check those boxes so they can qualify as social equity applicants and score additional points on applications for the precious pot licenses — even if the owners don’t meet the criteria.

HempStaff CEO James Yagielo said qualifying as a social equity applicant “could very well be the difference between having enough points over someone or not.”

While no local positions are posted on the company’s job board, Yagielo said the Illinois firms that have already contracted HempStaff plan to apply for the next round of 75 conditional dispensary licenses that will be issued by May. Yagielo noted that none of them has a stake in the state’s cannabis business.

The sponsors of the state pot law sought to use the legislation to boost minority ownership and participation in the industry and right some of the wrongs of the drug war. (Firms owned by individuals who have lived in an impacted area or have cannabis-related offenses on their records also can qualify as social equity applicants.)

The provision that grants social equity status to employers has, however, drawn scrutiny from members of the Chicago City Council’s Black Caucus, who have claimed it includes “loopholes” that run counter to those goals.

“I don’t believe that truly is what social equity means,” Ald. Jason Ervin (28th), the caucus chair, said during a recent news conference month alongside fellow black aldermen.

“I think [it’s] about the ownership of people that look like the folks that are standing up here having an opportunity at the ownership level — not [to] be owned in part or just participating as workers.”

Ervin’s statements came after members of the caucus introduced an ordinance that would prevent recreational pot sales from starting until July. Alex Sims, a spokeswoman for the caucus, said last week that members intend to advance the measure if the City Council fails to strengthen the state’s equity considerations, although it’s unclear what specific issues they want addressed.

State Sen. Toi Hutchinson, an Olympia Fields Democrat who co-sponsored the state pot law, said that aspect of the law incentivizes the hiring of minority workers.

“I wish I could say that our only issue is that we don’t have business owners,” said Hutchinson, a member of the Illinois Legislative Black Caucus who will soon become the state’s cannabis czar. “That’s not our only issue. We also don’t have jobs.”

Despite the concerns raised by the Black Caucus, Yagielo said HempStaff hasn’t “received much pushback.”

“I think that’s because we’re getting people jobs from that area,” Yagielo said. “We’re only following the regulations set by the state.”

HempStaff, which also offers dispensary training in Illinois, isn’t the only firm advertising jobs for social equity applicants. Though the employers aren’t listed, postings seeking a trimmer and a gardener are among the solicitations that have cropped up elsewhere online in recent months.

Yagielo said he anticipates Illinois’ cannabis job market will “explode next year” but noted employers are largely in a holding pattern, waiting for regulators to make licenses available.

“Right now, it is kind of a hurry up and wait,” he said. “Some people will put the top guys on retainer, but no one’s expanding or employing until they actually have that license in hand.”