It is critical that individuals be provided with the resources and support necessary to obtain or maintain employment as they leave custody and return to the community. If staff and community partners have been unable to connect the individual with a job prior to his or her release, he or she should have a series of interviews arranged for the first days back in the community. If nothing else, the individual should have an appointment with a job specialist at the nearest One-Stop career center in his or her home community.

Upon release every inmate should also have a pocket-card with one or more of the following listed, as appropriate:

The name, address, and phone number of his or her new employer. The start date and time should also be listed, along with the name of the person to whom he or she should report on the first day. A list of documents needed for the first day of work should also be included.

The names, addresses, and phone numbers pertaining to any interviews scheduled for him or her. The dates and times should be listed, as well as a list of documents needed for the interviews.

The address and phone number of the One-Stop career center closest to the address where the released individual will be living upon his or her return to the community.

Providing people who are leaving correctional facilities with even more specific job documentation and information is particularly helpful. In addition to information about the local One-Stop, individuals should be provided a list of information on any and all employment resources available in the community to which they will be returning.

People re-entering the community workforce should also receive something in writing about any credentials they have earned or progress they have made during their incarceration. Credentials should, where possible, be "portable," so that a trades-based or academic certification from the prison or jail is meaningful to employers in the community. Corrections officials will need to partner with community-based unions, community colleges, or trade schools to ensure that any certification or degrees awarded are accepted by schools and employers outside the correctional facility.

At a minimum, individuals should receive a letter from the staff that highlights the work skills they have demonstrated or acquired during incarceration. This should be included in the release packet, and can go a long way toward helping the inmate in the search for work. The letter should act essentially as a letter of recommendation, indicating what activities the individual participated in while incarcerated and what they can offer an employer.

Example: Corrections Organized for Re-entry, Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections

Upon release, individuals who are participating in the federally-funded Corrections Organized for Re-entry (CORe) program receive a portfolio that includes the following documents: (1) Resume; (2) Job certificates received during incarcerations; (3) Community resources directory for their region; (4) A discharge synopsis that includes information on their current employment status and any pertinent employment related appointments and programs; (5) OSHA card; and (6) educational grant information (where applicable).

Inmates who have expressed interest in faith-based programming should also be provided with a reference card that includes the phone number of a faith-based organization or community-based organization that will be able to provide emergency assistance, such as counseling, a place to sleep, or a referral to a clinic or other health provider.