Prisoners work for less than an euro an hour. How does this help them, this UvA scientist wonders
For some years now, work in detention is voluntary in the Netherlands. That sounds better than it really is, concludes UvA philosopher of criminal law Hadassa Noorda. And it still does not contribute enough to reintegration into society. “It’s time we limit punishment to the time spent in prison.”
Endlessly folding matchboxes, assembling clothes pegs or smashing CDs, some examples of work performed in prisons. In the Netherlands, the work is done for an hourly wage less than a euro, with which at most a snack or packet of cigarettes can be bought at the end of the day. Since 2021, that work has become voluntary. But does this guarantee the rights of people serving prison sentences?
Last year, UvA criminal justice philosopher Hadassa Noorda sought an answer to the question of what rights people in prison should have in relation to work. With the help of a NIAS Fellowship, she was able to focus entirely on that research for half a year. Her article was published in the European Labour Law Journal in early September.
What is the idea behind work in prison?
“Work in prison should mainly aim at rehabilitation, to ensure that people can rejoin society. But that goal has often been lost sight of in history. Take the 16th century penal institutions, such as the Spinhuis, now a UvA building. In the Spinhuis, women who had something on their record had to spin wool into yarn, with the idea that the work would allow them to return to society. But soon terrible work punishments were carried out. Moreover, the disciplinary houses were a convenient means of getting cheap labour. So that shows how work in captivity can go both ways.”
Are prisoners still seen as cheap labour today?
“I think so. You often hear the argument that it mainly takes time to organise work for people with little work experience. But at the same time, you can also earn from people who are paid almost nothing. Certain jobs – like breaking CDs because that is apparently expensive or complicated – are done in prison. That is only profitable because of the low pay. On top of that, prisoners cannot invoke their labour rights as we know them.”
Could you call work in prison a modern form of slavery?
“That is a very big term, which may be misleading. But the moment someone is not paid or paid very little, I think it is applicable. Of course, you are not completely obliged to do the work, but there is a very big incentive to do it.”
How does that work exactly? Working in prison has been voluntary since 1 July 2021, right?
“It is called that, but there are some downsides. In fact, work in prison is used as a means of encouraging desired behaviour. If you do your job well as an inmate, you can earn certain privileges as a result. Like being allowed to see more family, play sports or do more challenging work. The idea behind this is that good behaviour is rewarded to promote reintegration. But that gets in the way of the voluntary nature of work: after all, without work, no privileges.”
How problematic is that? If we compare Dutch prisons with other countries, it’s not too bad here, is it?
“If you look at US prisons, then yes, we have things pretty well organised here in the Netherlands. But that view can also cause us to overlook our own problems.
The work in custody programme in the Netherlands now focuses mainly on preventing recidivism. That is obviously important for the safety of society. But apart from that, it is also important to make sure that the prison sentence does not carry over into life afterwards.”
“This is because we see that in many cases many people are unable to fully participate in society after serving the sentence. 80 per cent of prisoners still do not have a job a year after release. Many prisoners have debts that they can never pay off with the low pay. Or children, whom they cannot support financially. When they are released, they have a hole in their CV, which only makes it harder for them to get a job. For that phenomenon, I developed the concept of exprisonment in earlier study, which shows that incarceration also occurs outside the prison itself. We need to avoid that. Imprisonment in itself is so drastic that I think it should be a duty to ensure that that punishment does not continue outside prison walls.”
What do you suggest?
“Before 2021, work in prison was both a right and a duty, now it is neither. I don’t think it needs to become a duty, because there are other ways to prepare for reintegration into society. But if we want to take rehabilitation seriously, work in custody should become a right.”
“I also argue for better wages and better work options. Work that has meaning for you as a person when you return to society. If we want people to return to society we must pay them for the work they do and provide good work options and conditions. If we don’t do that then the punishment continues.”
