Working Behind Bars: Employed Prisoners' Perception of Professional Training and Employment in Prison

Abstract

The research is aimed at examining the perceptions and attitudes of prisoners employed in enterprises in prison vis-à-vis employment and deriving conclusions regarding the impact of employment on the lives of prisoners in prison and its contribution to advancing their rehabilitation. Doing time is generally a painful experience, both physically and mentally, and often adversely influences prisoners' life after release. Programs and activities have been developed in prisons in many countries, including Israel, to mitigate these impacts and at the same time reduce recidivism following release. A key such program is employment in enterprises within the prison walls, including training of prisoners in a variety of professions. In the framework of the present qualitative research 20 prisoners employed in enterprises in Israeli prisons were interviewed, and these aired their perceptions regarding employment and its effects. Three main themes and 18 sub-themes defining the attitudes of the prisoners to the issue emerged from the interviews. The first two themes are: employment provides benefits and alleviates the pains of imprisonment; and employment helps prisoners' rehabilitation. The third theme emerging from the statements of an isolated number of prisoners is: employment is an act of exploitation on the part of the Prison Service and serves no useful purpose. The overall conclusion of the study is that employment in enterprises in prison is generally perceived by the prisoners as positive and contributory, in terms of both reducing the damage caused by imprisonment and raising the likelihood of the prisoner being rehabilitated through employment following his release.

Fine-dining in prisons: Online TripAdvisor reviews of The Clink training restaurants

“…Prisoners staffing the restaurants were no longer considered as inmates but rather as trainee hospitality employees capable of delivering outstanding service, which further highlights the potential success of vocational training in reducing reoffending (Cale et al, 2018). This also supports the findings by Peled-Laskov and Timor (2018) who concluded that the opportunity for employment alongside gaining soft skills positively contributes to prisoners' self-image, self-respect and confidence.…”

“…Working there equips them with catering and life skills and allows them the opportunity to engage with the general public as an opportunity to gain confidence before release and integration back into society. The benefits of interaction with the public before release is a finding echoed in previous research (see Peled-Laskov and Timor, 2018). Therefore, the restaurants not only prepare them for the life outside with the help of the mentoring programme but also give them a taste of that life whilst still inside the prison.…”

“…Therefore, hospitality is seen as an important industry to support prisoner rehabilitation and provide the necessary social and life skills (Beier, 2015). Working there allows prisoners the opportunity to engage with the general public and gain confidence for a successful integration back into society, whilst also providing them with hospitality management and life skills; a success mirrored in previous international research (Werblow and Dischino, 2015;Peled-Laskov and Timor, 2018). Therefore, The Clink Charity becomes the bridge that links these two separate worlds together by (re)educating prisoners using the concept of the training restaurant and, in the process, reducing reoffending rates.…”

“…Prisons are increasingly seen as hospitality establishments. To date, hospitality, culinary arts, and catering studies have featured prominently in the vocational qualifications and training offered in prisons (Goodger, 2003;Werblow and Dischino, 2015;Peled-Laskov and Timor, 2018). Previous studies have attested to the important role of vocational education and training in prisons in the rehabilitation of adult prisoners and offenders, providing them with learning and employment pathways which will support them economically and socially for life in society once released (Dawe, 2007;Zirkle and Martin, 2012).…”