Untapped potential: Ease the re-entry transition for previously incarcerated individuals
According to the Florida Chamber Foundation research, there are only 64 people looking for work for every 100 open jobs in Florida. This doesn’t account for any skills gap that may exist. Employers across industries are facing a talent crisis and must consider nontraditional talent pools to fill key positions.
The Florida Chamber Foundation’s Future of Work Florida initiative has created a strategic vision for uniting businesses, workforce, and education partners to engage and train potential talent pools from early learning to lifelong learning, and everything in between. Our collaboration efforts not only aim to develop the skills needed to fill in demand positions, but also increase awareness of the mid-to-high wage, high demand opportunities available and the pathways to get there.
Previously incarcerated individuals represent a talent pool overlooked by many companies until now. The Future of Work Florida Second Chance Hiring initiative is working to create a resource hub and train at least 100 businesses in Florida to demystify common misconceptions of hiring previously incarcerated individuals.
According to the Florida Department of Corrections, there are 24,000 justice-involved individuals released annually to Florida communities who are expected to reach self-sufficiency. Due to increased state and federal funding opportunities, many justice-involved individuals are increasing their skills while incarcerated by taking advantage of the 92 career and technical education (CTE) courses in 33 distinct vocational trades across 11 career clusters offered by the Florida Department of Corrections.
It seems with increased access to acquire in demand skills, previously incarcerated individuals are well-positioned to re-invent themselves upon release after serving their time. Yet, in a recent re-entry simulation delivered by Florida Department of Corrections, I learned that 23% of previously incarcerated individuals return to the justice system within one week of release.
This caught me by surprise, and made me question, “What factors are contributing to recidivism in Florida? And what can communities do to ensure individuals have the “second chance” we often hear about? What policy changes should be considered to address this?”
The re-entry simulation objective was to develop understanding of the barriers faced by previously incarcerated individuals on their journey to self-sufficiency upon release. Each participant was provided a folder describing their life circumstances as well as requirements to complete within the first four weeks post-release. Here is a recap of observations upon completing the simulation:
Possession of state-issued identification upon release is imperative to access resources, complete legal requirements, and navigate society.
Several participants in the simulation who first attempted to get their identification at the DMV, but were met with extremely long lines, were turned away, or had to return the following day or week. This prolonged their ability to access key community resources needed to survive and thrive such as food banks, shelter, etc.
It is nearly impossible to complete requirements such as securing employment, completing a pre-employment drug screen, setting up a bank account, or other necessities without a state-issued identification.
During the debrief, Florida Department of Corrections staff shared that the 24,000 justice-involved individuals released each year are provided with nothing aside from a $50 debit card that must be activated to be able to use, which requires access to a phone or cell phone. It was discussed that while some incarcerated individuals obtain state-issued documents prior to release, this is not a requirement.
Below are some questions I’ve wrestled with since completing the simulation:
Why wouldn’t we equip those re-entering society with tools for success, including state-issued identification, especially given the goal of self-sufficiency?
Are we genuinely doing all that we can as a community to help previously incarcerated individuals integrate back into society and not return to the justice system?
Could the average person get back on their feet with a mere $50 without a support system and plan in place before release?
Would requiring state-issued identification pre-release help decrease the reality that within 1 week of release, 23% of previously incarcerated individuals return to the justice system?
The Florida Chamber Foundation is bringing these conversations to light as part of our Future of Work Second Chance Hiring initiative to share thoughts on promising practices for assisting our re-entry population on their path to self-sufficiency. For more information, please contact me at rludwig@flchamber.com to get involved.
Rachel Ludwig is the senior director of Future of Work with the Florida Chamber Foundation.
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This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Untapped potential: Ease the re-entry transition for previously incarcerated individuals
