No, they are saying that fruit picking is not a job that requires training or qualifications. So prison work picking fruit does not help prepare the inmate for life after release.
Are you saying that people in prison lack training or qualifications?
Picking fruit is a valid occupation and one that is not limited by post-incarceration rules like not being a stockbroker after committing securities fraud or not being a childcare worker after pedophilia. While many agriculture jobs provide on the job rather than classroom training, there are skills to be acquired that can enhance productivity and value.
I’m not saying that people in prison lack training or qualifications. That assumption would actually probably hold true, on average, but I have not studied that and that was not my point.
My point was that fruit picking, in contrast to many other potential professional activities, is not something that is likely to help an inmate build a post-release career.
When you apply for a job as a fruit picker, the employer is not going to reject those candidates who lack former experience.
Not really, it's a seasonal job (at least in Germany, but are there climates where plants bear fruit year round?) that doesn't pay enough through the season to sustain you through the entire year.
Germany is about 35% reincarceration rate after 3 years, and US is about 29%,
Although there are strong caveats, and like for like data doesn't exist. After 5 years US rate goes up a lot, my link doesn't have that for Germany.
> Recidivism rates vary significantly around the world, and many countries have insufficient data. Rates of criminal recidivism around the world are reported to be as high as 50% and have not declined in recent years. It is challenging to compare recidivism between countries because definitions of recidivism outcomes vary from re-arrest to reoffending to reimprisonment. Within these definitions, countries differ in their inclusion of misdemeanors, fines, traffic offenses, and other crimes. Additionally, follow-up times (period after release from incarceration) are inconsistent between and within jurisdictions and vary between six months and five years.
Seems like a pointless statistic, as solely arresting dangerous criminals instead of scores of harmless people would likely lead to a higher recidivism rate afterwards.
100% agreed, and I shared the above only partly to provide an answer, but mostly to flag some major caveats.
Another great example: "The U.S. incarceration rate is 693 per 100,000 residents —compared to 76 per 100,000 in Germany, and 69 per 100,000 in the Netherlands."
There is some real academic research on the topic, but as far as international comparison goes, it's not a solved issue. For example, this paper basically concludes that countries should update their reporting:
Let's compare "lifelong sentence" in Germany you have a high chance to get out after 15 years. (There is a mechanism for true lifelong, but that's then more of a psychiatric treatment than jail)
Point is: Comparing some statistic without context is not easy
