Should inmates have to work?

[Luis0228]

Most prisoners prefer to work to gain commisary for essential items such as, snacks, pillows, Radio/T.V (They always come clear so the prisoner won't hide contraband), and when they go to their parole hearing and it shows that the prisoner stays out of trouble and works, it increases their chance of an early release. Other than that, prisoners also work to pass the time faster.

 

[Boosting Hell]

Most prisoners prefer to work to gain commisary for essential items such as, snacks, pillows, Radio/T.V (They always come clear so the prisoner won't hide contraband), and when they go to their parole hearing and it shows that the prisoner stays out of trouble and works, it increases their chance of an early release. Other than that, prisoners also work to pass the time faster.

This,

Who in their right mind would want to sit in a cell or infront of a TV all day? If I was in prison i'd certainly want to be active as much as possible. It's like outside of prison, sitting in the house all day is boring.

 

It should be optional with rewards that entice prisoners. I don't think forcing criminals to work would have a good outcome.

 

[reddogwwa]

Tricky question for me! Based on principle I believe they should be forced to work for absolutely nothing! Even with them hypothetically not getting paid for labor they still wouldn't be doing it for free. The prison is a roof over their head, the cafeteria keeps them from going hungry, the random miscellaneous amenities like gyms libraries and such keep them from total boredom. That stuff is far from free. I'm paying $1400 a month on rent, about $300 on food a month, $30 on my gym membership a month...THEN I get taxes taken out of my earned check to compensate for them? I'm supposed to sit here and say they shouldn't be forced work?? Yeaaaaaaa right hahahaha. Honestly fuck them, they forfeit their right to act like human beings why should the system, myself and you guys pick up their slack? Do not get me started on food stamps or anything else of that nature either.


THEN again!! I think if we forced the inmates to work for nothing, it could be worse than outsourcing...I think it could definitely impact the middle class out there actively trying to find jobs at lets say assembly lines...as an example.

But I do believe something should be in place to offset their living cost because I grew up being told nothing is free and I have to work for what I want.

 

[Xier0]

Right from wrong? There is much more to crime than that. Socioeconomic status is more of a driver of crime than anything else. Being in a gang seems like the right thing to do when they give you a purpose and belonging. Killing rivals isn't immoral because they are a threat and you are at war with them. There is no absolute morality and prisons should understand this and seek to give those at their weakest points a chance at rehabilitation.

Did you know that it is completely legal to ask potential employees if they have been convicted of something and deny them employment if they have? Do you know what happens to someone who has already turned to crime when they can't find a job and are living on the streets? They turn to what they know because people think they should suffer for doing something wrong and that suffering just causes them to do more wrong since they do not see any other choice. Prison isn't a thought when someone robs a gas station so they can buy some food or so they can buy some meth because they are addicted to that.

Did you know the US has the largest number of prisoners in the world? We also lock up the highest percent of our citizens than anywhere else in the world. More than Russia. More than China. More than the harshest dictatorship. Land of the free my ass.

I didn't see this a month ago when it was posted, but I'll respond now:

^
It's kind of my point, prisons don't exist to teach people morality. "Rehabilitation" is just the PC word for imprisonment, the same way that "Defense" is the PC word for anything military/war related. Anyways, if the risk of going to prison doesn't faze someone when they are robbing a gas station, then they BELONG in prison, because they aren't fit for society when they value the 12 pack of beer they are stealing more than the lives of the people in the store.

 

[SuF]

I didn't see this a month ago when it was posted, but I'll respond now:

^
It's kind of my point, prisons don't exist to teach people morality. "Rehabilitation" is just the PC word for imprisonment, the same way that "Defense" is the PC word for anything military/war related. Anyways, if the risk of going to prison doesn't faze someone when they are robbing a gas station, then they BELONG in prison, because they aren't fit for society when they value the 12 pack of beer they are stealing more than the lives of the people in the store.

It is only a PC term in the US. No one deserves prison. They deserve help.

 

[Xier0]

It is only a PC term in the US. No one deserves prison. They deserve help.

I would say that very few people who go to prison need "help" in the way that you seem to be imagining it. Prison is a crime deterrent - most people who go to prison already knew that what they were doing was illegal and knew the consequences, they just didn't want to get caught. If prisons really were successful as rehabilitation facilities for lost well-meaning citizens, the recidivism rate wouldn't be so high.

 

[Kyokushin]

They should get to work inside of prison for clean-up etc etc, and get paid an amount that they can redeem at the end of there jail sentence IMO, and any-misconducts clear out there account and they don't get anything. Motive for good behaviour in prison

 

It is only a PC term in the US. No one deserves prison. They deserve help.

Are you inferring that prison doesn't help inmates?

The whole idea is to make inmates scared of committing crimes if they are to be released later.

 

[Chris]

They should be forced to work, but the problem is yo can't trust them to do anything important so you will spend more time just watching them then them actually working.

 

[Burnallday]

I think all inmates in any prison/jail should have to do some sort of labor. Why not make use of them instead of making them sit there and do nothing? I believe inmates would rather be able to do some sort of job to give them a sense of worth while they are doing time.

 

[Hailey]

I personally think we should make them work without taking the time to really go through and read all of the answers and comments. I will address the first question. In the United States you do have inmates that work. It's usually based on good behavior and things like that. It's considered a privilege and they use the money to buy little things like cigarettes. If they could come up with a way to regulate inmates work and have their labor go back to paying for the upkeep of them being there. Which is currently coming out of our wallets as tax payers then I think they should have to work.

 

[Phi]

I don't think they should make any money for doing any of their work and if they do then it should be next to nothing.

Slavery is illegal, even with prison inmates. One doesn't lose rights in America when being incarcerated, or so the story goes. The patriot act has some asterisks to that statement though...

 

[Kenji973]

Well it's better to have them work instead to do nothing and possibly get there sentence term lowered.

 

[X4NRSA]

Forcing inmates to work may not be a good thing but something must be done to reform them. Like someone mentioned earlier, forcing people to work may appear as if it is a concentration camp but truthfully, it may have the best results. People commit crimes so they can be in jail there is just so many things wrong with the system, I dont even know where to start lol. But yes, I think they should be forced to expend all their energy, not necessarily work (would be efficient). For example, in the novel/movie "holes" the juvie delinquents were forced to dig holes all day, something similar to that. In my opinion, only when pushed past someones limit, can someone truly reflect and reform, giving them a cell with a comfortable bed and 3 meals a day is a joke.

 

[Kiln]

Yes and I'm amazed that they just sit in there all day, although it may not be the best idea to give an inmate something that could be used as a weapon.

 

[Auvicity]

I got thinking about this today at work in thinking about what happens to those who go to prison and why we're not using them at resources.

Why don't we have some sort of regulated way of making them work? I mean, why stick them in jail and waste money? We're always saying that we only buy things from China and other third world countries because labor is so cheap.

Should we force inmates to work and produce?

They already work, but it would be logical to do labour in jail maybe to shorten down a sentence?

 

[TrustKing]

I don't think they should be forced, it depends on the crime they committed as they are human beings still, no matter what they've done. And they should be given the option to work. And there could be incentives for them to work if they do. Like x% of the their pay they get to keep and spend on a shop in the prison etc.

 

[Mandingo]

Prisoners are given the choice to work for extremely low wages (I think its like 10-25% of minimum wage), but it allows productivity and a head start when they get out, rather than wasting all their time doing nothing in prison.

 

[3ugene]

Working hard builds character, I think that's what these people lack. Making money while in prison for when you get out could help people rebuild their lives, that's a great thing. Force them? Yes, but people should only be forced to work low hours, anything extra should be optional. Inmates should have the opportunity to make a decent amount of cash.