BASICS Issue #22 (Sep/Oct 2010)

by M. Lau

As a source of cheap labour, prisons are a blessing for corporations. Under the Welfare to Work legislation in the U.S., BP has been earning a tax credit of $2,400 for every prisoner they have hired to help clean up the ecological disaster it created in the Gulf. Without being required to supply health benefits or workers’ compensation, BP has been able to put prisoners to work in a most toxic setting for up to twelve hours a day, six days a week. BP has also been able to force prisoners to sign documents that prohibit them from discussing work conditions. Read more…

BASICS Issue #22 (Sep/Oct 2010)

by Mike Brito

The Commissioner of Correctional Service of Canada (CSC), Don Head, recently stated that there will be “major construction initiatives” in the Canadian prison system.
Although the Harper cabinet has refused to publicize the cost of their plans to imprison more people, government spending estimates confirm that capital costs for penitentiaries are scheduled to increase by 43% next year.

Estimates released earlier this year show that the prison system’s capital expenditures would increase from $230.8 million for 2009-10 to $329.4 million in 2010-11. It is not clear whether the money will be used to build new prisons or renovate the old.

Public Safety Minister, Vic Toews, asserted that the money would be spent only on “updating and improving” existing facilities. Research conducted at Carleton University has confirmed that there is also a “building spree” at the provincial level, with plans to spend more than $2.8 billion on new facilities and expanding older institutions. Read more…