From left, DEED Deputy Commissioner Marc Majors, DEED Commissioner Steve Grove, and Department of Corrections Commissioner Paul Schnell hear from a Department of Corrections job skills instructor.

Preparing people who will be released from prison into Minnesota communities is the right thing to do – for individual Minnesotans as well as for our overall economy and public safety. Formerly incarcerated people released into our communities deserve a second chance and a fair shot at finding living wage employment. Otherwise, we're setting them up for failure – and that harms all of us.

Minnesota's extremely tight labor market makes it more important than ever to help connect formerly incarcerated individuals with employment. DOC, DEED and other state and local agencies and organizations are working together to ensure people are prepared for employment when they are released from prison – and that employers are prepared to hire them.

DOC has a long-standing program called EMPLOY that helps prepare incarcerated individuals for employment before their release, connect them with employers after their release and provide follow-up services to help make sure they remain employed in work that is a good fit for them.

Two newly announced programs led by DEED, in coordination with DOC and the U.S. Departments of Justice and Labor, will amplify those efforts. The state-funded Pilot Re-Entry Program Competitive Grant program and the federally-funded Partners for Reentry Opportunities in Workforce Development (PROWD) program are also aimed at preparing formerly incarcerated individuals for employment, connecting them with employers and providing supportive services to help them succeed.

We know these programs work. For example, recent research shows how successful EMPLOY is at helping formerly incarcerated people find work and reduce recidivism. A DOC evaluation of EMPLOY conducted in 2021 showed that people who participated in the EMPLOY program were nearly three times as likely to find employment and nearly 60% less likely to become reincarcerated within two years after release.

Find out more about this research and about the benefits of helping connect formerly incarcerated people with employment – not just for individuals released into Minnesota communities but for Minnesota employers and all of us interested in a fair and just society. Read A Job Can Change a Life in the December edition of Minnesota Economic Trends.