What Thompson didn't mention was that the legislation will embed prison industries in the private sector, which in other states has led to a downward pressure on wages and to lost jobs for Joe and Jill Taxpayer. A few years ago, when the country was locked in a recession, it was unlikely that the Legislature would have even considered expanding prison industries into the private sector. Now that unemployment is at a record low, and jobs are begging for takers, lawmakers seem to be making up for lost time. Wisconsin is about to join the burgeoning market of commercialized prison labor. Prison industries provide so many goods and services that most Americans have probably encountered them, whether they know it or not.
Some states produce toys, and many produce mattresses.
Oregon inmates make uniforms for McDonald's. In Nevada, inmates convert luxury cars into stretch limousines. And nearly all of the programs produce furniture, the largest component of prison industries nationwide. In Kansas, they process Social Security numbers. In Iowa, they work for the Department of Tourism's Information Bureau, boosting the same state that locked them away.