Employment and the Post-Release Puzzle: The Lived Experience of Securing Legitimate Work among Women Released from Prison in New Zealand

Abstract

<p>As incarceration rates continue to rise in New Zealand (The Department of Corrections, 2019b), the number of people being released from prison will also rise. Life sentences are rare and therefore, the majority of people who are sent to prison will, at some point, be released to reside in the community again. Despite this, individuals are leaving prison unprepared for life on the outside, and they face a range of barriers as they try to establish new lives for themselves in the community. Employment is often cited as a stabilising factor after prison, a factor which can help a person to rebuild their life and become a contributing member of society. However, having a criminal history can negatively impact employment prospects, making employment difficult to obtain, especially in an increasingly competitive employment market. Thus far, research looking at employment after prison, and at prison and the post-release period in general, has been largely centred around men. Women and their specific needs are often overlooked in the research and in the criminal justice system due to their lower incarceration rates, and solutions, policies and practices are often created with men in mind, then adapted slightly to ‘fit’ women, without much real recognition of women’s different needs (Baldry, 2010; Mills, Kendall, Lathlean, & Steel, 2013). Therefore, the research undertaken for this project explores the role of employment in the lives of women who have recently been released from prison, looking at the benefits of and barriers to employment through the lived experiences of those who are in the post-release period, with a goal of adding to women-focused literature, which is desperately needed. Through semi-structured interviews, and guided by a feminist methodological framework, I drew on this lived experience of the participants and put their voices at the forefront of the research findings. The key finding was that while employment is vital for long-term success after release, the benefits of employment extend far beyond financial security, and employment is one piece of a post-release puzzle, which without the other pieces, is relatively useless on its own. A more holistic approach is needed in the post-release period to promote success.</p>

Gender Inequality and Discrimination within Aotearoa New Zealand’s Criminal Justice System: Some Professional Support Workers’ Perspectives

“…Similarly to the 19 th and 20 th centuries, ANZ's women's prisons, programmes and prison work still follow outdated gendered stereotypes that teach women skills associated with domestic work and men skills associated with employment (Kale, 2020). The final parallel I highlight between prison practices as they were and as they are now is the remotely located and small number of women's prisons in ANZ.…”

“…There are currently only three women's prisons, and they are located away from densely populated areas. Women are therefore forced to move across the country, leaving their children, family/whānau and support behind (Bentley, 2014;Kale, 2020;McIntosh & Workman, 2017). Women face inequalities and discrimination from their imprisonment just based on the small number of prison sites.…”

“…While certain sections of women's prisons do accommodate women-specific needs (such as mother and baby units), prisons are increasingly designed to fit a universal 'gender neutral' model (Bartlett & Hollins, 2018;Carlton & Segrave, 2011), which frequently refers to a male-centric prison design. While it is well understood in prison research that women have different needs than men and that such a universal response to incarceration will not work for all those incarcerated (Bentley, 2014;Gainsborough, 2007;Gundy et al, 2013;Kale, 2020;McIntosh & Workman, 2017;Moore & Scraton, 2016;Skiles, 2012), this focus continues to be considered the 'norm' into which women are placed (Acker, 1990;Kern, 2021;McCorkel, 2003).…”

“…Their perspectives, shared in the following chapters, come from their years of close work with women navigating the carceral continuum and represent an underresearched source of insights. Their stories challenge most prison research which has been both primarily quantitative and focused on men (Gibson, 2022;Kale, 2020).…”

“…Although female-focused prison research is increasing, there remains limited literature on women's experiences within the CJS (Gibson, 2022;Kale, 2020). Furthermore, very few studies focus on the perspectives of professionals working with incarcerated women and/or women who have been released.…”