CONTACT: Michele Kane (916) 358-1802- wk (916) 462-0731- cell
SACRAMENTO- This morning at the California Chamber of Commerce, the California Prison Industry Authority (CALPIA) and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) hosted the Sacramento Employer Forum, encouraging business owners to hire former offenders. Also, partnering with this event, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department, California Workforce Investment Board and the Sacramento Employment and Training Agency (SETA).
“Hiring former offenders is a win-win for employers and the general public,” said Charles Pattillo, General Manager of CALPIA. “Employers not only receive tax credits and insurance savings, but when businesses hire trained former offenders they help taxpayers save money and keep communities safer.”
Dozens of employers attended the forum and learned about accessing a pool of trained, skilled and certified workers. Business owners also discovered how to reduce their recruitment and training costs through work opportunity tax credits and fidelity bonding options.
CALPIA trains over 8,000 offenders per year in service, manufacturing and agricultural industries in California’s penal institutions. CALPIA is self-supporting and does not receive an appropriation from the state budget.
CALPIA participants returned to prison, on average, 26-38 percent less often than offenders released from the CDCR general population.
CALPIA and CDCR partner with California Sheriff’s Departments in their effort to rehabilitate offenders at the local level. Post-prison realignment, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Department has demonstrated its leadership and expertise in the rehabilitation of county level offenders, creating an additional pool of trained workers available for hire.
SETA is a joint powers agency of the City and County of Sacramento and provides local oversight of the Workforce Investment Act Program and provides specialized employment services for Sacramento’s ex-offender population as part of its overall mission to be an effective force in connecting people to jobs and business owners to quality employees.
