Georgia Department of Labor launches job placement program for state prisoners nearing release

Caption

Georgia Labor Commissioner Bruce Thompson speaks at a news conference at the Chatham County Detention Center in Savannah on Nov. 8, 2023.

Credit: Benjamin Payne / GPB News

A group of about 50 soon-to-be-released inmates of the Metro Reentry Facility state prison in Atlanta will be the first participants of a new employment assistance program run by the Georgia Department of Labor when it launches in December.

Under the name Walking the Last Mile, the initiative in collaboration with the Georgia Department of Corrections will offer job training, résumé-building, mock interviews and actual interviews with potential employers as a way of helping incarcerated people reintegrate into society.

“We're going to walk with them while they're in and we're going to walk with them when they're out,” Georgia Labor Commissioner Bruce Thompson said at a Wednesday announcement in Savannah at the Chatham County Detention Center. “And you will see that the plans of this initiative are to make sure they're gainfully employed before they ever leave the gates of being incarcerated.”

GDOL plans to expand the 12-week program to other state prisons, with the goal of serving 1,000 inmates by January 2027.

“From a humanitarian standpoint, it's the right thing to do,” Thompson said. “If we truly believe someone has served their time and we want them to have another chance, we've got to work with them to make sure they have that.”

Hundreds of employers have already signed up to be connected with participants, he said, with most jobs beyond entry-level positions.

The initiative is personal to Thompson, as his brother died by suicide after being released from prison, having been incarcerated several times: “He never really felt like he ever fit in society,” Thompson said.

To assess the program's effectiveness and inform how it expands, GDOL plans to monitor the employment status of participants within six months to one year, as well as track reductions in recidivism.