Sponsored by:
Senator ANTHONY M. BUCCO
District 25 (Morris and Passaic)
Senator TROY SINGLETON
District 7 (Burlington)
SYNOPSIS
Establishes Second Chance Program in charge of providing opportunities through labor organizations for formerly incarcerated individuals.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Act concerning employment opportunities for individuals returning to the workforce after imprisonment and supplementing Title 34 of the Revised Statutes.
Be It Enacted by the Senate and General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. The Legislature finds and declares that:
a. There is a lack of viable employment opportunities in New Jersey for individuals recently released from prison;
b. Employment opportunities are necessary to curtail the rate of recidivism and to reincorporate recently incarcerated individuals back into civil society;
c. Individuals with low educational attainment are at greater risk of engaging in criminal activity since they have tremendous difficulty finding and maintaining adequate jobs; and
d. Labor organizations, given their unique understanding of their community’s economic conditions are in the best position to identify employment opportunities for recently incarcerated individuals and to propose a plan for attracting such employment opportunities into their respective trades.
2. There is established, in the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, the Second Chance Program (program). The program shall be under the direction of the State Employment and Training Commission as part of the commission's responsibilities pursuant to subsection d. of section 9 of P.L.1989, c.293 (C.34:15C-6). The purpose of the program shall be to provide real and lasting career opportunities for formerly incarcerated individuals through, and in consultation with, labor organizations in order to reduce recidivism.
For the purposes of this section, "labor organization" means a labor organization as defined in section 3 of 29 U.S.C. s.402.
3. This act shall take effect immediately.
STATEMENT
This bill establishes the Second Chance Program within the Department of Labor and Workforce Development. The purpose of the program will be to provide real and lasting career opportunities through labor organizations for formerly incarcerated individuals, with the intent to reduce recidivism.