Employment Prospects & Resources

Court orders prisoner computers – South Africa

Media Release, 25 November 2024

“We welcome the judgment of the South African Constitutional Court in the Ntuli case, which ordered correctional facilities to allow prisoners access to computers in cells for educational purposes. The total ban by Corrections, and their arguments about security concerns, were swept aside by the Court. Research shows a third reduction in recidivism amongst prisoners who have had access to education” said CJC President Mr John Dowd AO KC. 

“The recognition of this right in South Africa highlights the parlous state of education delivery to Australian detainees. Technological advancements in the community have disadvantaged prisoner education, as hard copy tertiary correspondence courses available ten years ago have been replaced by online services which require access to computers. There are obvious benefits in enabling prisoners to continue their studies in-cell. Computers in cells with access to approved mainstream services would also enable effective counselling without conflicts of interest and provide continuity upon their release” said Vice President Ms Elizabeth Evatt AC.

“The CJC proposes these recommendations for Australian corrections” said Mr Dowd. 

  1. There must be open access to diverse courses run by educational institutions for people in prison. This would require improved access to computers in cells, hardware such as keyboards and monitors to facilitate APPROVED studies, and relevant software and access to educational institutions’ white-listed websites.
  2. In the interim, prisoners should be allowed to purchase books directly from Australia’s largest bookseller, Dymocks. This may be facilitated by the Australasian Correctional Education Association, who might create a list of suitable reading materials, subjects, and prospects for employment. Such processes would promote self-directed learning and allow prisons access to education immediately, before technology is universally available.
  3. All prisoners should have the support of a welcoming and adequately trained ‘Education Officer’. This will ensure prisoners are made aware of education opportunities, as well as requirements for course completion both within incarceration and beyond.

 

As per the second recommendation, Justice Action has compiled the following list of career prospects for prisoners to undertake post-release. We have also listed some resources that we are fighting to be obtainable during incarceration, such as textbooks.

 

1. Agriculture / horticulture

2. Building and construction / Heavy machinery / Traffic control 

  • Curtin University: Bachelor of Applied Science (Construction Management)
  • Curtin University: Graduate Certificate in Project Management
  • Majority of parolees take up post-release employment in the construction industry (84%) – labouring (50% of all jobs), technician and trade, machinery operation and driving.
  • Book: Basic Building and Construction Skills
  • Book: Construction Skills 
  • “Attitudes towards the employment of ex-offenders in construction are significantly more positive than in other industries. 30.9% of sub-contractors had hired ex-offenders previously; 30.9% of sub-contractors had not hired ex-offenders previously but were willing to do so.” (Source: Professor Martin Loosemore, UTS fact sheet “Integrating ex-offenders into the Australian construction industry”)

3. Business owner

4. Chef

5. Disability support and care

6. Independent contractor or freelancer

  • If an individual has expertise in specific fields
  • Freelancer: copywriter, editor, website builder, and more
  • Independent contractor: carpenter, auto repair, plumber
  • Book: John Wiley & Sons Advertising

7. Information Technology

  • Computer coding
  • Increasingly relevant skill in the digitised world
  • Curtin University: Bachelor of Computing (Major: Computer Science)
  • The well-established “Simply Coding” organisation in the US delivers programs that may be useful for coding education in Aus prisons(https://simplycoding.org)  
  • Dymocks has wide range of available books
  • Book: Computer Systems: A Programmers Perspective
  • Book: Coding: Coding Basics
  • Book: First Coding: Debugging Code
  • “The restricted access [prisoners] have to [ICT] is a form of censure that renders them second-class citizens in the Information Age” (Aysher Kerr, Matthew Willis ‘Prisoners use of information and communications technology’). 

8. Language

9. Law

10. Mental Health

11. Music

12. Physical education and fitness training

13. Sociology

14. Trades

  • Book: Basic Plumbing Skills
  • TAFE offers vocational training e.g. Certificate II in construction, furniture making, horticulture

15. Visual art 

  • Curtin University: Bachelor of Arts (Fine Arts)
  • Curtin University JETA Program