If it is hard to find work as an unemployed worker in Tennessee, it is much harder to find work as an unemployed ex-convict worker in Tennessee. The Department of Labor and Workforce Development and the Department of Correction have joined forces to create an innovative program to provide help and guidance to inmates who are about to be released. Studies show that ex-convicts who find a regular job are much less likely to return to the system and are much more likely to become productive members of society. For example, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 650,000 inmates are released every year, but one third of them return to prison and one of the big factors is lack of employment. This is not good either for inmates or taxpayers at large. Why? Consider this. In Tennessee we have over 20,000 inmates and each one costs us $23,000. If we can get inmates that are released to stay away from prison, this will not only help them but also help reduce the cost on the penal system of returning customers.

 

 

The latest reports from the Tennessee Department of Labor points to a large increase in the number of green jobs in Tennessee. This is not totally a surprise for the Department of Labor. After all, the State of Tennessee invested $5.5 billion in the green economy and continues to provide incentives to companies willing to invest in green jobs.