Starting next month Louisiana inmates will be able to shop their resumes to prospective employers from prison using a LinkedIn-style secure online portal.
Louisiana Department of Corrections Assistant Secretary of Reentry Rhett Covington said the Reentry Workforce Job Portal allows inmates to connect with employers before they are released.
“Our hope is that we can get someone employed, or at least the promise of employment lined up before they get out. Get that conversation started with employers,” said Covington.
Before the portal, many inmates wouldn’t be able to start their search for employment until after they had left prison.
The program is paid for by money saved as a result of criminal justice reforms passed in recent years. Covington said it will help them further save money by reducing recidivism.
“If we don’t allow them to get back into normal society, normal living, a place to stay, transportation, a job, they are going to be left with only going back to crime,” said Covington.
The Portal is being promoted by the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry.
Covington said the post-release job program is the first of its kind and takes advantage of the over 1,300 certifications inmates have received in the last two years.
“In other states, it is word of mouth and they really aren’t even getting into this secure cloud, we are a national leader in that area and we have to stay that way,” said Covington.
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