Smart Workforce Solutions
Missouri Prisoner Workforce Re-Entry
From Corrections to Careers…Businesses Discover New Workforce Recruiting Solutions
There are more than thirty thousand offenders incarcerated in Missouri Department of Corrections facilities statewide. Of those individuals, 97% are headed back to communities across the state, including Southwest Missouri. The Missouri Career Centers in Joplin and Monett are joining forces with other centers statewide and the Missouri Department of Corrections to help ex-offenders successfully re-enter society. Partnerships with businesses in the region will be crucial to make re-entry a success.
The release of thousands of inmates presents both challenges and opportunities for Missouri’s communities. While programs exist to help re-integrate ex-offenders into community life, studies have shown that employment ties directly to the success of an individual outside of prison. Getting ex-offenders into full-time employment quickly upon their release is good for Missouri’s communities and helps fill the gap needed for available, qualified workers.
While not every occupation is suitable for an ex-offender, several companies in Southwest Missouri may find value in this workforce supply. The connection of Missouri Career Centers to the corrections system helps prepare ex-offenders to become work ready. While incarcerated, offenders have daily work assignments that teach punctuality and work ethics, preparing them for employment once they reenter the community. Offenders also receive employment skills training, which includes instruction on completing a resume, mock interviews, and job retention.
Beyond job-building skills, offenders who do not have a GED or high school diploma attend GED classes daily. As a result, the Department of Corrections produces the highest number of individuals receiving their GED in the state of Missouri. The Corrections Department uses twenty-three apprenticeship training programs certified by the U.S. Department of Labor to produce skills in high demand by employers.
Two incentive programs are geared to help businesses utilize the ex-offender workforce. The Work Opportunity Tax Credit is available to private businesses that hire targeted groups of workers, including ex-offenders. The Federal Bonding Program provides bonding insurance to employers willing to hire certain high-risk applicants who may otherwise be denied coverage from commercial bond carriers. The bonds protect employers against theft, forgery, larceny, and embezzlement.
To assist the transition from Corrections to career life, the Division of Probation and Parole regularly monitors the ex-offenders. Through local offices in Joplin, Neosho, and Aurora, the division serves as an external support system for the ex-offenders and is another resource for business employers. Mandatory drug testing is a mechanism for ex-offenders through Probation and Parole to assist in the offenders’ long term success.
In most cases, it is legal for a business to hire an ex-offender. While there are some types of jobs that individuals with certain criminal histories cannot hold due to the nature of the job, most occupations can be open to ex-offenders. Factors to consider when making an individual determination about a job applicant may include: relevance of the criminal offense to the job being sought, time elapsed since the offense, magnitude of the offense, possible work-related characteristics of the offense, and the ex-offender’s attitude regarding the offense.
Approximately twenty-five percent of Americans have criminal records. Helping career success of ex-offenders improves public safety, since people with jobs commit fewer crimes than those without jobs. Communities benefit when qualified workers are out earning a living and contributing to society. Instead of paying $14,000+ a year to house an inmate in prison, it is more cost effective to help individuals earn a living and contribute to the tax base.