Labor Market and Incarceration

¶ … Consequences of Incarceration on an Increasingly Homogenized Labor Market It strongly appears that there is a direct correlation between incarceration and its effects on the labor market. A review of articles pertaining to this subject suggests that this relationship is largely causal in nature. The reality of the situation is that there are increasing rates of incarceration (Travis and Western 233) in the United States in the 21st century.

Thus, it is accurate to state that the effects of incarceration on the labor market are increasing as well, and resonate throughout it both in terms of the lot of the individuals who have experienced incarceration, and on the labor market in general. The most eminent effect of incarceration on the labor market involves the fact that there is marked difficulty obtaining employment for those who have endured incarceration. There are several factors contributing to this reality.

Many employers conduct background checks on potential employees and mandate that they reveal their criminal history. As such, these employers typically prefer to hire individuals who have not endured incarceration, particularly in instances in which there is a felony. In this respect, then, one of the main ramifications of incarceration is that it decreases the pool of viable candidates from the labor market itself. More acutely, however, is the consequence that for those who have been incarcerated, it is increasingly difficult to obtain steady, gainful employment.

Another significant effect of incarceration on the labor market relates to issues of remuneration. Specifically, it is not uncommon for those who have endured incarceration to earn less money than their counterparts who have never spent a substantial amount of time in prison do. Perhaps the primary reason for this situation is that many ex-convicts are simply fortunate to get a job at all -- since they are much less likely to get hired than those without criminal records. The subsequent quotation readily verifies this fact.

"For many ex-prisoners, however, labor market prospects after prisoner are bleak. Several studies of ex-prisoner populations report that roughly half remain jobless up to a year after their release" (Travis and Western 233). Consequently, it is not surprising that those who are able to find employment are subjected to lower wages than those who were never incarcerated. In fact, "incarceration reduces wages and employment among former prisoners" (Travis and Western 233). The correlation between these two results is fairly obvious.

Since there are fewer ex-prisoners who are able to get jobs than those who were never prisoners, they are also subjected to decreased rates of pay. Therefore, it is fairly clear that the labor market is noxiously impacted by the escalating rates of incarceration. Still, this fact is somewhat mitigated by the perspective of the one analyzing this trend. Employers benefit from this situation, as they have a point of justification for paying certain employees (such as those who were former prisoners) lower wages.

Viewed from this perspective, incarceration is a boon for the labor market. However, it is certainly a detriment for the increasing.