As the industry grapples with a worker shortage, Takeuchi has found a unique solution, partnering with Georgia’s Jackson County Correctional Institution in a work release program.
“I get an employee who shows up to work every day,” said Jeff Stewart, President of Takeuchi U.S. “Given the alternative of sitting in the jail cell, being put on a duty where they pick up trash on the side of the road for free, or coming to work every day — well, we don’t have employee absenteeism.”
In addition, “Their attitudes are generally better than the rest of the population in the sense that they understand that having a job is a benefit and they treat it that way,” Stewart said. “They want to do a good job because they want me to be able to go back to the warden and say, ‘Yes, those guys are great.’”
Retention also increases. “They’re staying because they’re getting paid and able to save up money,” Stewart said.
Jackson County Correctional Institute started the program with local employers to help set individuals up for success before their release. Four years ago, Takeuchi began accepting prisoners as employees at their North American headquarters in Pendergrass, Georgia, and has since employed more than 40 different inmates.
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Individuals are first screened at the prison for any skills or desires they have for a particular type of job. Prison staff then contact local companies to set up an interview.
“The lieutenant in charge of the program will reach out when he has prisoners qualified in this area, or even if they don’t have qualifications but he thinks they’ll be a good fit,” Stewart said. “We’ve had enough employees now that they know who we are and what we do.”
After an interview, Takeuchi’s hiring managers decide whether to offer employment.
“For us, the hiring is easy because they’ve gone through prescreening at the prison that they can socially and physically do the things we’re asking them to do,” Stewart said. “The hiring process is also a lot shorter for us because we’re just interviewing them to see whether we think they’re a good cultural fit for us.”
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In a rare case where an inmate who’s been hired comes to work with the wrong attitude or otherwise doesn’t prove a good fit, “I can call the program administrator and the employee doesn’t come back,” Stewart said. “We’ll start interviewing to replace them.”
The majority of individuals employed at Takeuchi’s Georgia facility work in the warehouse, either picking and packing parts for shipment or driving equipment out of containers and preparing it to ship to dealers.
However, placement depends on qualifications. For instance, “I have two guys working in our service department doing any needed modifications to machines,” Stewart said. “They’re ASE-certified car mechanics and have a lot of hands-on experience and some training in engine systems.”
If employees in the program don’t have access to a vehicle or have a suspended driver’s license, the prison provides transportation to and from work. Inmates work full time, making the same pay rate as other Takeuchi employees.
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In addition to workforce benefits amid the industry’s labor shortage, the state of Georgia offers companies a tax incentive if inmates work 180 days or longer.
However, “Part of our corporate philosophy is giving back to the communities in which we serve,” Stewart said. “We’re not just after the benefit for Takeuchi but as a benefit for society as a whole to hopefully get those guys into a productive nature in society quicker so they don’t re-offend and come back into the system.”
On average, Stewart estimated that inmates in the work release program come out of prison with about $20,000 saved so they can purchase a car and pay for insurance, as well as first and last month’s rent and a security deposit when they’re able to find housing.
“As they develop and save more money, the prison will help them get their driver’s license back and then allows them to get a vehicle and drive themselves to and from work,” Stewart said.
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Generally, prisoners participate in the program when they have 18 months or less left on their sentence. Upon release, Takeuchi often offers a permanent position. However, because the county-owned facility is in the state penitentiary system, it houses prisoners from all over Georgia.
“I’d say that 60 percent of the time, once prisoners get out, they go home to a different part of the state,” Stewart said.
For those who try to stay in the area, “Their nemesis right now is affordable housing with a felony conviction on their record,” he added. “They’re hard-pressed if they don’t have any family in the area to be able to stay because they just can’t find housing.”
In his volunteer role as a chaplain at the correctional facility, Stewart partners with the prison’s counselors to find individuals housing, often at a halfway house or through some sort of transitioning group.
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“Most people don’t realize that once an inmate serves their full sentence, the day they’re done they literally put them outside the jail with $50 in their pocket and tell them to have a good life,” he explained. “If they’re getting paroled out of the prison system, they need to have an address that is accepted by the parole board. There are people incarcerated that have been paroled, but they don’t have an address to go to so they can’t get out of prison.”
Earning money before release helps with the financial aspect of finding housing, while Stewart and prison personnel work to assist with other barriers.
Given the success of the partnership in Georgia, Takeuchi began a similar program at their manufacturing facility in Moore, South Carolina.
“We haven’t found a prison close by that we can tap into, but we partnered with a group called JUMPSTART SC,” Stewart said. “They have inmates go through a 40-week program and once they finish, they’ll take the top 5 percent and offer them up to two years of housing. Part of the obligation for them to be accepted into that program is to get gainful employment.”
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Individuals referred to Takeuchi by JUMPSTART SC are already out of prison and prescreened. The organization brings them to work every day and takes them home. As of this writing, Takeuchi had seven individuals from that program on their payroll.
