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Proposition 6, a ballot measure that would have amended the California Constitution to ban involuntary servitude in prisons, failed. That’s troubling. Do voters really believe that forced prison labor is acceptable?
State constitutions (like the federal constitution) have long outlawed slavery and involuntary servitude except “to punish crimes.” Perhaps voters thought that prisoners should be forced to work as part of their punishment, which would be in line with the broader “tough on crime” trend in the electorate this year. Whatever the voters’ reasons, forcing incarcerated individuals to work against their will is immoral and does not harm anyone, either the prisoners or those in the outside world, most of whom will return. It doesn’t really help anything. This practice should be abolished.
Prison itself is a punishment prescribed for those incarcerated. Prisoners should be able to choose their jobs, many of which are located in prison, as well as the educational and treatment programs necessary to prepare them for life after prison. “The goal should be to change behavior,” says Jay Jordan, a longtime criminal justice reform activist who spent seven and a half years in prison and advised the Proposition 6 campaign.
Former inmates said they were assigned jobs they didn’t want and were prevented from taking classes or drug and alcohol treatment programs they wanted. Their labor is often paid well below the minimum wage and is poorly compensated. And refusing to work often results in disciplinary action, including loss of various privileges, they say. Some former prisoners said they waited years to get the jobs and treatment they wanted.
This does not mean that jobs will disappear. There are more than 90,000 people in California prisons, but only about 35,000 have jobs. And even if Proposition 6 had passed, prisoners would still have been able to work voluntarily.
This system needs to change. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation has already made some improvements. Up to 75% of full-time jobs are being converted to part-time jobs, giving prisoners more time to receive education and treatment. The prison system has also doubled the meager wages it pays for work, but even with the increase, the pay for the work is small. Most prisoners earn between 16 and 74 cents an hour, while firefighters earn up to $10 an hour.
But state law requires all able-bodied inmates to work, and prison officials can’t change that.
But state legislatures can and should do that. In fact, lawmakers passed a bill this year to eliminate the work requirement, and the governor signed the bill, but that was contingent on voter approval of Prop. 6.
Congress should pass a bill to remove forced labor from the criminal code, without resorting to constitutional amendment. Although the constitution allows forced labor in prisons, it is the penal code that mandates it. Only voters can change the provisions of the Constitution, but legislators have the power and duty to change laws.
California Governor Gavin Newsom should also consider the possibility of an executive order directing prison officials to end forced labor.
Additionally, Congress should give voters another opportunity to repeal the constitutional exception, especially given that Prop. 6’s language may now be clearer. Nevada voters decisively passed a similar bill using the word “slavery,” in contrast to California’s initiative.
California’s Constitution should not allow morally repugnant practices like forced labor. This is a legacy of state brutality and should not be tolerated in prison or anywhere else.
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