SOUTH AFRICAN PRISONERS ORGANISATION FOR HUMAN RIGHTS

SAPOHR Prison Industrialization

Plan of Action

Project Goals

A. To develop a detailed, accurate understanding of the Prison

Industry in South Africa.

B. To lay the groundwork for the building a Prison Industry. C. To write a proposal for official recognition of Prison Industrialization for the Department of Correctional Services.

D. To popularize the concept of Prisoners as workers and working Prisoners as deserving of workers rights protections

E. To build alliances with existing Business and Labour bodies to support a Prison Industry.

Project Research Topics

A. Conditions of Work

1) The types of work prisoners engage in.

2) The hours they work, the equipment they use.

3) Which prisoners work, which do not work?

4) The dangers involved, the most common problems they face.

5) How the Prisoners feel about the work they engage in.

6) What are the conditions of work for people employed through the community corrections programme

B. The Products and the Corporations

1) "What are all the products the prisoners produce?"

2) "What happens to what the prisoners produce?"

3) "Who profits, state or corporations?"

4) "What corporations are involved in prison labor?"

5) "Where the products are sold and to whom?"

6) "How much profit the corporations involved make?"

7) "Where the corporations come from and what relationships the corporations have with people in the government?"

8) "What corporations are involved in community corrections programme labor?"

C. Complaints

1) "Have prisoner's ever registered formal complaints?"

2) "Who is documenting prisoner complaints?"

3) "What about ex-prisoners employed through the community corrections programme?"

D. Development Plans

1) "In what direction is DCS and prison industry developing?"

2) "What are the plans for privatization and does this effect prison industry issues?"

E. Internal Structures

1) "Who is in charge of regulating prison labor?"

2) "What are the current regulations governing prison labor?

3) "What internal mechanisms of accountability exist?"

4) "Is DCS planning to develop more detailed regulations?"

F. Employment Regulations

1) "What are the National employment regulations in South Africa?

2) "Are there provincial differences?", if any?"

3) Do these policies currently affect DCS prison labor policies?

G Labour Unions

1) "What do labor unions think of the issues of prison industry?"

2) "Have any unions looked into the issue at all?"

3) "Would unions support development of a prison industry?"

4) "Do the unions have any information regarding corporate investment in prison labour?"