Prison Labor

Discussion Starters

PRE-READING WARM-UP QUESTIONS ☀

1. Should prisoners get paid for the work they do?
2. What kind of work should prisoners have to do?
3. How can corporations benefit by hiring prisoners?

PRE-READING VOCABULARY TASK ☀

Match the words on the left with the meanings on the right.

1. mandatory a. to help pay for part of something

2. occupation b. to recover from behavioral
problems
3. voluntary c. required
4. benefit d. work that one is paid for
5. subsidize e. an amount of time a criminal
has to remain in prison
6. jail sentence
f. funding to help pay for
7. idle something (such as medical insurance)
8. rehabilitate g. inactive
9. deduct h. to take away
10. room and board i. by one’s own choice, not forced
j. a place to live in addition to utilities and food

Prison Labor
A booming business behind bars
1. Some form of labor is usually mandatory for prisoners. There are two types of labor that inmates may
perform. The first is labor as a form of punishment. The second is labor as a form of occupation. Occasionally,
prison labor is voluntary. Should prisoners be allowed to say no thank you when it comes to work?
2. Many US companies are bringing jobs back to American soil. Instead of using cheap overseas labor, they are
employing prisoners at private or state prisons. Corporations can pay prisoners less than a dollar an hour, and
they don’t have to pay benefits. Prisoners aren’t just making license plates these days. Major corporations,
including box stores and coffee companies, employ prisoners. In fact, with the rising population of inmates in
America, the job market in US prisons is booming!
3. In the US, companies that employ prison laborers can get tax rebates. Taxpayers subsidize low prison wages
while corporations make huge profits. Some prisoners receive a reduced jail sentence rather than an income.
Private prisons make huge profits on these labor contracts. Providing jobs to inmates also means there are
fewer jobs for unemployed non-inmates. If you knew which products were made by prisoners, would you shop
differently?
4. Prison labor programs claim to help rehabilitate inmates. Prisoners who receive work training may be ready to
return to the real world before those who remain idle. But what about prisoners’ labor rights? Laws designed
to protect prisoners are largely ignored in the US. Instead of receiving equal pay, prisoners receive “training
wages”. Most of their earnings are deducted for things like room and board, uniforms, or transportation. Is
working for pennies in prison similar to slavery?

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 Prison Labor
Discussion Starters
COMPREHENSION ✍
Discuss these questions in pairs, and write the answers in your notebook.

1. According to the reading, what must most prisoners do while they are in jail?
2. Why is it beneficial for US corporations to pay prisoners rather than
overseas laborers?
3. What is sometimes offered to prison laborers rather than a wage?
4. Name at least one example of something that could be deducted from a
prisoner’s pay.

VOCABULARY REVIEW ✍
A. Chunking
Create five words or expressions by pairing the words that are commonly found
together in English. Write a sentence for each example.

! room | cheap | medical | jail | and board | rebate | benefits | sentence | tax | labor

1. m

2. m

3. m

4. m

5. m

B. Fill in the Blanks

Complete the sentence using a word or phrase from page 1. You may need to change the word form.

1. About 35% of my pay is ______________ for taxes. 4. Prisoners talk about their difficult childhoods in
the ___________________ program.
2. I won’t take a job unless it includes medical ___________. 5. Participation in the training program is
______________. You don’t have to join.
3. If Grandpa remains _______ for too long, he won’t be able 6. It is _______________ that you wear work boots.
to get up. You can’t work without them.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
1. Should prison work programs be voluntary?
2. Should prison laborers get paid the same amount as non-prisoners who do the same job?
3. How similar is prison labor to slavery? What are the differences?

CRITICAL THINKING
If criminals know they can get food, shelter, and even a job in prison, what is the incentive for staying out of jail?

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 Teachers’ Notes

Lesson Description: Students read about prison labor. The lesson includes vocabulary review exercises, comprehension
questions, and discussion questions. Intermediate–Advanced. Time: 1.5–2 hours.
Tags: prison, prison labor, crime, discussion, controversial

*See Discussion Starters

PRE-READING WARM-UP Teaching Guide (www.esl-
Individual answers. library.com/discussion) for a
variety of ways to use the reading.
Audio is available for this lesson.
PRE-READING VOCABULARY TASK Students can access the audio via
1. c 2. d 3. i 4. f 5. a 6. e 7. g 8. b 9. h 10. j our podcast and iTunes.

* After your students have read the reading, go back to the vocabulary match exercise. Can your students spot any words that may mean
something different in a different context? Discuss words that can have more than one word form. (E.g., “idle” can be an adjective and a
verb; “benefit” can be a noun and a verb.)

COMPREHENSION QUESTIONS
1. According to the reading, most prisoners have to do some form of work while they are in jail.
2. It is beneficial for US corporations to pay prisoners rather than overseas laborers because they can pay even cheaper
wages.
3. A reduced jail sentence is sometimes offered to prison laborers rather than a wage.
4. Room and board, transportation fees, and uniform costs are all examples of things that could be deducted from a
prisoner’s pay.

VOCABULARY REVIEW
Spelling Note:
A. Chunking – Individual answers for sentences. The text shows the American spelling of
1. room and board the words Labor, Laborers, Behavioral,
2. cheap labor and License. Most other English-
speaking countries spell these words this
3. medical benefits way: Labour, Labourers, Behavioural,
4. jail sentence and Licence. Make it a challenge for
5. tax rebate your students to find these words in the
lesson and see if they know the alternate
spellings.
B. Fill in the Blanks
1. About 35% of my pay is deducted for taxes.
2. I won’t take a job unless it includes medical benefits.

3. If Grandpa remains idle for too long, he won’t be able to get up.

4. Prisoners talk about their difficult childhoods in the rehabilitation program.

5. Participation in the training program is voluntary. You don’t have to join.

6. It is mandatory that you wear work boots. You can’t work without them.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS and CRITICAL THINKING – Individual answers.

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