From jails to jobs in Monterey County
UPDATE 1/28/16 6:15 PM: Getting a job is just one of the many challenges inmates face when they’re released from jail. The Monterey County Jail, along with other agencies, is trying to tackle that problem by offering career advice to inmates who are about to be released.
Jail officials said studies show inmates with solid support systems and jobs have a better chance of not returning to jail. But getting those jobs isn’t always easy. That’s why the Sheriff’s Office is trying to fill the void and link the inmates with potential employers.
“Sometimes people think someone made an offense, they’ve gone to jail, they don’t have an opportunity to do something positive with their life,” said Beatriz Morga, a substance abuse therapist with the Geo Group. “And that’s not necessarily true.”
On Thursday, Monterey County Sheriff Steve Bernal addressed some 60 inmates within weeks of release about an opportunity that’s the first of its kind. The jail teamed up with the Department of Probation and the re-entry service “Geo Group” to introduce inmates to employers willing to hire them, including Labor Ready.
“We’re here to give them second chances,” said Bianca Gamboa, a customer service representative with Labor Ready. “We’re basically here to give them a second chance for different kinds of work. Our staffing agency provides anything from construction to demolition, anywhere from retail, clerical, so we provide a wide variety of different kinds of work. So we’re just asking what kind of skills, what kind of work they’re interested in, so that way we’re able to give them more information about that.”
But getting inmates help is a process that’s complicated by the state’s realignment program, AB 109. That legislation pushes certain inmates from state prisons to county jails.
“We have somebody in jail now who is going to stay here for 14 years at this facility and some that are going to do 10 years, and these are just going to progress as we go further and further into how AB 109 is affecting us,” said Chief Deputy of Corrections Michael Moore. “What it does is put extra stress on us to try to figure out how do we train somebody? What kind of programs do we have for someone who will be here for 14 years?”
But whether it’s months, perhaps years behind bars, some of these inmates are looking ahead.
“I’m going to contact the construction company over here,” said inmate Kenny Packer. “He said to call him when I get out to hook us up with a job, a job interview.”
Giving them a chance to succeed, rather than return to the past.
“There’s no other option, I can’t come back to this,” said inmate Joey Maxwell. “I’ve been doing this since I was 12 years old; I’m 39 now. I’m really tired of it, you know what I mean, so, I’m ready to be successful and be happy in life.”
While today’s event is new in Monterey County, it’s not new to the area. The Community Action Board of Santa Cruz has hosted several “Jails to Jobs” events at the Rountree Men’s Medium Security Facility in Watsonville. About 70-percent of the inmates released have landed full-time jobs.
ORIGINAL POST:
The Monterey County Sheriff’s Office is helping connect inmates who are about to be released with employers who will hire them.
Coming up tonight, KION’s Mariana Hicks will talk about some of the obstacles they might face, and how the sheriff’s office is helping them get ready.
