Obama Administration Spending Millions to Help Ex-Cons Find Jobs

[Geee]

CNSnews:

(CNSNews.com) - The U.S. Labor Department is distributing almost $12 million to ten organizations "to help ensure the success of adult offenders returning to work.”

The grants of $1,170,000 each will provide training, employment and support services to adult former inmates returning to their communities after serving time in what the Labor Department calls "justice facilities."

"The grants announced today are an investment not just in the futures of former inmates, but also in the communities and families to which they are returning," said Secretary of Labor Hilda L. Solis.

According to a Labor Department news release, the grants will pay for job training, employment preparation, mentoring and connections to support services such as housing, substance abuse programs and mental health treatment.
These grants represent the fourth generation of the Reintegration of Ex-Offenders-Adult program, which was first funded in 2005 as the Prisoner Re-entry Initiative.

The Labor Department says each year, approximately 650,000 inmates are released from state and federal prisons, and without help in making a successful transition, many will return to criminal activity.