Rhode Island General Laws
Chapter 42-56 - Corrections Department
Section 42-56-21. - Labor of prisoners committed for criminal offense, qui tam, penal action, or failure to give recognizance.

§ 42-56-21. Labor of prisoners committed for criminal offense, qui tam, penal action, or failure to give recognizance.
(a) All persons imprisoned in the adult correctional institutions on account of their conviction of any criminal offense, or on execution issued in any qui tam or penal action, or for not giving the recognizance required of them to keep the peace upon complaint for threats, shall be let or kept at labor therein or on the institution lot or in some building thereon, for the benefit of the state, in any manner, under a contract and subject to any rules, regulations, and discipline that the director, or his or her designee, may make; provided, however, that for the purposes of furthering the rehabilitation of persons concerned and upon the unanimous recommendation of at least three (3) of the five (5) members of the classification board, provided for by § 42-56-30 and upon the approval of the director, or his or her designee, an inmate imprisoned on account of his or her conviction of a criminal offense, not a sex offense involving minors, who has served at least one-sixth (⅙) of his or her sentence, or who, in the case of a person serving a life sentence from his or her parole eligibility date and as to whom there is reasonable cause to believe he or she will honor his or her trust, may be permitted to work at paid employment for his or her own benefit or participate in a training or educational program within or without the state on a voluntary basis outside of the institution lot at any time and under any conditions and restrictions as the director, or his or her designee, may impose and subject to recall by the director, or his or her designee, while continuing as a prisoner at the adult correctional institutions, provided that:
(1) Representatives of local union central bodies or similar labor organizations are consulted;
(2) The paid employment will not result in the displacement of employed workers or in the supplanting of work regularly performed by the workforce. It shall not be an unfair labor practice to utilize prisoners to perform labor at outdoor work sites in conjunction with unionized employees;
(3) No person sentenced to life for murder shall be placed in a work release program until that person has served a minimum number of ten (10) years.
(b) The director, or his or her designee, may at any time recall a prisoner from that release status if he or she believes or has reason to believe the peace, safety, welfare, or security of the community may be endangered by the prisoner being under that release status. Any prisoner recalled under this provision shall be presented to the next regularly scheduled meeting of the classification board for their further consideration.
(c) A prisoner authorized to work at paid employment within or without the state under this section shall be required to pay court ordered restitution and pay any court ordered fines and costs and may be required to pay, and the director, or his or her designee, is authorized to collect the costs incident to the prisoner’s confinement as the director, or his or her designee, deems appropriate and reasonable. Collections for costs incident to a prisoner’s confinement shall be deposited with the treasurer as a part of the general revenue of the state. Collections made pursuant to a court order shall be deposited with the registry of the court.
(d) All persons committed to the adult correctional institutions pursuant to an order of contempt issued by a court of this state may be permitted to work at paid employment for their own benefit or participate in a training or educational program within or without the state on a volunteer basis outside of the institution lot at any time and under any conditions and restrictions that the director, or his or her designee, may impose and subject to recall by the director, or his or her designee, in accordance with the provisions of this section.
(e) Prior to releasing an inmate into a work release program, the department shall check with the bureau of criminal investigation (BCI) of the department of the attorney general to ensure that the prospective employer has no felony record. No inmate shall be released to an employer who has a felony record. “Employer” as used in this section shall include the president of a corporation, or any partners in a partnership, and the chief supervisory person at the site where the inmate will be employed and the person having direct supervisory authority over the inmate.
History of Section.P.L. 1976, ch. 290, § 1; P.L. 1979, ch. 72, § 1; P.L. 1984, ch. 223, § 1; P.L. 1985, ch. 131, § 1; P.L. 1986, ch. 174, § 1; P.L. 1987, ch. 69, § 2; P.L. 1988, ch. 129, art. 25, § 7; P.L. 1991, ch. 183, § 2; P.L. 1991, ch. 362, § 1; P.L. 1994, ch. 70, art. 24, § 1.

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