Over 500 prisoners on 'Release to Work' despite hard times

Reducing re-offending through training and jobs for prisoners.

Edward (not his real name) has been in and out of jail his whole life, mainly living off the proceeds of his many break-ins.

He learned a lot in the prison engineering workshop, but he’d never had a proper job until Canterbury Prisons Release to Work Case Manager Ray Hohipuha found him a Release to Work placement in a local engineering firm.

“He’s been there for 20 months now and he’s done so well he’s been made a supervisor and has up to five guys working under him. The firm are keeping him on now he’s been released on parole,” says Ray.

“I really think he won’t re-offend this time. He’s finally got something good and he doesn’t want to lose it.”

Under the Release to Work programme, carefully selected low-security prisoners who are nearing the end of their sentence are allowed out of prison during the day to work in ordinary jobs in the community. They receive the market wage, but money is deducted to cover their board, court-imposed fines, and child-support payments; remaining money is put into an account they can access on release.

Employers also undergo a background check and the suitability of the type of work, location, and other employees is assessed.

The aim is to provide prisoners with training and a job that they will keep after release, since research shows that ex-prisoners with a job are less likely to re-offend.

With the economic downturn, it’s been getting harder for Ray and his colleagues throughout the country to find placements for prisoners, but they still found work for 548 prisoners last financial year, only down a little from the 607 total of the previous year.

Corrections Inmate Employment Area Operations Manager Phil Harman acknowledges that markets are getting tougher.

“But we’re trying not to let that impact too much on our numbers. We’re running two days of training for Release to Work case managers to hone their skills in persuading prospective employers to give prisoners a go,” he says.

Pegasus Engineering Transport Manager Jason Polson, who employs Edward, says he’d also encourage other employers to give Release to Work prisoners a go.

“Ray always picks good people to send us so it works from an employment point of view. "I also like the Release to Work programme because it means prisoners have to pay board from their wages, so the cost isn’t all falling on the tax-payer.

“It’s good for them to work and contribute to society, and it means they’ve got some money in their pocket when they finally get out and a way of making a living for the future,” he says.