West Virginia is continuing to grapple with a persistent worker shortage, with just 54 workers for every 100 open jobs. At the same time, the state’s incarceration rate outpaces the national average, with 713 per 100,000 individuals being sentenced to time behind bars.
95% incarcerated West Virginians will be released to their communities after serving their sentence — but the journey home is particularly fraught, as 58% of people in state prison and 63% of people sentenced to local jail contend with substance abuse disorder. Faced with challenges maintaining sobriety, a lack of affordable housing, and barriers to employment—both in terms of skills and access to opportunity—the state’s recidivism rate remains one of the highest in the nation at 29.3%, and economic mobility remains elusive.
How can better support for those returning from incarceration help to address the state's talent gap?
Join state leaders, employers and advocates from across West Virginia for a private screening of “Being Free,” a groundbreaking documentary from Roadtrip Nation that follows three formerly incarcerated Americans as they make the move from life behind bars into the workforce.
Guests will hear from Lorrie Smith, West Virginia’s State Workforce Resiliency Officer, the Honorable Michael J. Aloi, a federal magistrate judge and a champion for those returning from incarceration, and a panel of employment and reentry experts including Betsy Jividen, former Commissioner of the Division of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Deb Harris of Jobs & Hope, Amber Blankenship of the REACH Initiative and Charlotte Webb of Charleston Property Restoration — a local employer demonstrating what's possible when formerly incarcerated individuals get a fair shot in the job market. Trey Kay, host of Us & Them, will moderate the discussion, with audience Q&A to follow.
We look forward to an evening of discussion and reflection during national Second Chance Month that will mobilize business and community leaders to recognize the power of second chance hiring as an engine of economic growth in West Virginia.
