Government turns to prisoners for cheap labor
The road to riches is paved with cheap labor. (See: China) And you don’t get much cheaper than prisoners.
A skilled onion picker can earn $10 an hour.
Recently, the state of Georgia announced a plan to use prisoners to harvest crops. Why? A new law pretty much ran off Hispanic field hands.
As federal employees celebrate Columbus, perhaps history’s most famous and geographically confused immigrant, the lack of onion pickers in Vidalia brings crocodile tears to the eyes.
The prisoner farm plan comes after a failed scheme to seduce probationers into doing the dirty work.
Now, a Georgia county is planning to use inmates to man fire stations.
A properly trained firefighter costs upwards of $30,000 a year. An inmate will work a lot cheaper – Camden County hopes to save $500,000 a year.
Of course, when my flaming roof is about to collapse, I’d prefer a guy to show up with an ax that knows how to use it for its law-abiding purpose.
Georgia isn’t the only place giving jobs to the undeserving: Indiana’s War Memorial saves $400,000 a year since using inmates ($1.50 per hour) instead of a landscaping company.
With a seemingly limitless number of criminals to employ, the jobless rate may not go down anytime soon.
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125 comments Add your comment
whocares
October 10th, 2011
12:27 pm
I have always thought about sending prisoners off to war to let them fight for their freedom. If they make it back, they are free to rejoin society. If they don’t, then they paid their debt to society…
Pat
October 10th, 2011
12:28 pm
Why are people angry over this? These people did a crime and need to do something other than sit and watch TV all day and workout. How about giving something back to the society that is paying for their “room and board?” Maybe it will show them that doing crimes is not worth it when you have to actually do something in jail.
Having them being firefighters is a stupid idea. I would not trust them on coming to put out fires when human life is at stake. Also, why would you take the jobs away from people that train and actually want to be there to help society instead of people who commit crimes that are against society. That does not make sense to me.
shameonhumanity
October 10th, 2011
12:29 pm
In case you didn’t already know, corporations and towns are already raking in $$$ on prisoners and your tax dollars. Many prisons are privatized and there is profit to be made on building prisons and once they are built, they will need to fill them. Your tax dollars will still be feeding, housing, clothing prisoners – but perhaps it will be even more of them now. Its free labor for corporations that will then raise the prise of your produce while your wages become stagnant or your jobs disappear. An injustice anywhere is an injustice everywhere and none of us are immune. It could be your son or daughter who makes a foolish mistake and gets sent off to a slave colony, so don’t be blinded by the stigma attached to criminals.
Tech '10
October 10th, 2011
12:30 pm
Makes Cents: I think you are asking too much out of some of the readers. I would personally be up for giving inmates that met a certain set of criteria to be put on construction jobs. That way they learn a trade for when they get out and gov’t buildings can be built for less. Make them framers or drywallers, make them pick up the trash, something. Part of the reason why criminals come out and almost certainly go back is that they have a stigma around them now and not one new skill to show for it most of the time. Heck, bring shop classes to the prison, it’s not like these people are convicted serial rapists and murderers. Most of them got busted for pot or for shoplifting a gas station. They deserve a second chance just as much as we deserve them not being a tax burden anymore.
sls
October 10th, 2011
12:31 pm
good idea!! it’s about time they have to get up and do something!
commoncents
October 10th, 2011
12:32 pm
Providing inamtes with food, board, medical etc for free is ok, but asking them to repay some of their debt while they are still incarcerated is slavery?
Sounds like most of you are defining slavery as working at a job you don’t like…
edinatlanta
October 10th, 2011
12:32 pm
do you dream of living in a “Road Warrior” kind of world? Admit it, you think that would be kind of cool dont you?
Jim Crow
October 10th, 2011
12:39 pm
Shame on the state of Ga. always want something for nothing, this is slavery.
AVM
October 10th, 2011
12:39 pm
What about as police officers? Or, better yet, government officials – they’re probably just as self-serving. Seriously, peaches and manual labor are one thing, but fighting fires and other critical government duties is laughable (and scary).
Makes Cents
October 10th, 2011
12:41 pm
Tech ‘10, I completely agree with you. I watch the comment board from time to time. I don’t know if a lot of people put a lot of thought into the holistic view of rehabilitating criminals. I like your point about the reason some of these criminals go back. They have not been equipped with the tools to function in society AND many people are not willing to give them a chance. This may be a bad example, but look at the star of “Catch Me if You Can”. In the end, he turned his deviant behavior into a constructive use for our government. No, not every story will be as successful, but a second chance is not too much to ask for. agree @ us not having them as tax burden btw