One of the causes of the declining rate of labor-force participation for men is the criminal-justice system. Many more Americans have criminal records today than in the past, and criminals are disproportionately men. Having a criminal record, even for nonviolent crimes or an arrest with no charges afterward, can make it more difficult to get a job once a prison sentence is complete.
As Scott Lincicome and Ilana Blumsack wrote for the Cato Institute, research shows that people with criminal records have a hard time finding work and have lower upward mobility. Simply having a criminal history makes finding work more difficult, even if the crime occurred a long time ago and a person has been law-abiding since or if the person was acquitted of a crime they were accused of. Lincicome estimates that the number of people being held back from labor-force participation for criminal-justice reasons, about 2 million, is three times as high as the number not participating because they are on Social Security disability insurance.
It’s important to lock up criminals. It’s also important to make sure people can reenter the workforce once they have served their time. That’s especially the case for people who were able to earn credentials and learn skills while in prison.
Georgia governor Brian Kemp (R.) has signed into law a bill that will help former inmates get identification cards and certificates of the training they completed while imprisoned. The bill passed both houses of the Georgia state legislature without any dissenting votes, and it will make it easier for former inmates to get jobs.
The simple, four-page law requires the state’s department of corrections to provide former prisoners with documentation stating training programs they completed while incarcerated, including educational achievements such as high-school equivalency diplomas, job training, and work they performed while in prison. It also allows the department of corrections to coordinate with other state agencies to provide identification cards to former inmates who lack them.
As Vittorio Nastasi wrote for the Reason Foundation, which supported the bill, “Providing people who have served their time and are being released with ID cards and documents related to the work and education they completed while incarcerated is a crucial step in ensuring their successful reentry into society.”
This law adds to Georgia’s admirable record on prison reform. Nathan Deal, Kemp’s predecessor as governor, once summarized his message to inmates: “If you pay your dues to society, if you take advantage of the opportunities to better yourself, if you discipline yourself so that you can regain your freedom and live by the rules of society, you will be given the chance to reclaim your life.”
Prisoners who complete job training, earn education credentials, and work in prison are exactly the kind of people who must be given the chance to reclaim their lives. This new law will make it easier for them to do so, and more states should follow Georgia’s lead.