Kenyans and other prisoners incarcerated in the United States could earn higher pay from prison labour should lawmakers pass the 2025 Bill to End Slavery.
According to the bill which is sponsored by Senator Clare Oumou Verbeten and Representative Cedrick Frazier, the bill seeks to reclassify prisoners as workers with employment rights a move which is expected to end forced labor practices in US prison system.
Available data from US Justice Department indicate that there are at least 800,000 prisoners in the US who are engaged in various. However, despite taking on various tasks within the prison system, many of them are not appropriately being compensated for the labor a fact which infringes on their rights.
According to American labour activists, many prisoners are various prisons in US states are undercompensated with pay ranging from between $0.13 to $2.
A report by BreakingAc.com, in 2021 alone, US prison labor generated at least $2 billion in goods and services.
Among organizations fronting for adoption of the bill is the Minnesota Incarcerated Workers Organizing Committee (MIWOC) which is targeting to create awareness to highlight exploitation of prisoners in the state correctional facilities.
The organization argues that end to forced labour in US prisons could result into economic empowerment as well as bring dignity to ex-prisoners upon their release and integration into the society.
Already, some states such as Minnesota and California have commenced drafting legislations which are expected to limit and end forced labour in the US prison system.
Spokesman earlier reported that the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), alongside the American Civil Liberties Union and the University of Chicago’s Global Human Rights Clinic, has already raised concerns about the ongoing violations of international labor standards in the US.
If the bill is adopted, Kenyans incarcerated in the US, which foreign affairs ministry estimates are at least 1,200, could received a fairly higher pay for prison labour.
