A new experiment in remote work ... from the inside
Planet Money examines Maine's experiment with allowing incarcerated people to hold remote jobs for market-rate wages, focusing on the stories of grants coordinator Darlene George and software engineer Preston Thorpe. Reporter Susan Sharon and Corrections Commissioner Randall Liberty explain how prison education led to remote work opportunities, how earnings are handled and prioritized for restitution and fees, and the ethical debates and incentive problems that arise when prisons collect a share of those wages. The episode contrasts Maine's guarded approach with Alabama's far more extractive system, and explores what this could mean for recidivism, victims, and the future of prison labor.