The efficacy of outsourced employment services for adults exiting Australian prisons

Abstract

Crime rates in Australia have declined or been steady over the past decade yet prison populations are at all-time highs. Similarly, unemployment rates have been low but unemployment for those ex-prisoners seeking work is very high. In this paper, we draw on the findings of an Australia-wide survey of government-funded employment service providers who support working-aged Australians including ex-prisoners in their search for work. We find that the heterogeneity of the needs of ex-prisoners coupled with the frugality and inflexibility of government policies and practices frustrates the abilities of these agencies to provide services to this target group.

RAS ID

52281

Document Type

Journal Article

Date of Publication

1-1-2022

Volume

68

Issue

8

Funding Information

Australian Research Council Linkage grant (ID: LP 140100329)

School

School of Arts and Humanities

Grant Number

ARC Number : LP140100329

Copyright

subscription content

Publisher

Sage

Comments

Ollerton, J., Giles, M. J., Baldry, E., & Cale, J. (2022). The Efficacy of Outsourced Employment Services for Adults Exiting Australian Prisons. International Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology, 68(8), 735-866. https://doi.org/10.1177/0306624X221102840

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Link to publisher version (DOI)

10.1177/0306624X221102840