Unit 8 Free Trade Agreements Research Paper

Due to the tight labor market, companies are relying on prisoners to provide them with labor. As of now, private prisons have become one of the largest powers in the “prison-industrial complex.” There are approximately 18 private prison corporations, which guard 10,000 prisoners, and more than 37 states have legalized the contracting of prisoners by private companies (Prison Slave Labor: Fascism U.S. – Style). For both the prisons, and the companies, it’s a good deal. Whyte and Baker list the benefits for those who utilize prison labor: no unions, strikes, health benefits, unemployment

“A set of bureaucratic, political, and economic interests that encourage increased spending on imprisonment, regardless of the actual need. The prison-industrial complex is not a conspiracy, guiding the nation’s criminal-justice policy behind closed doors. It is composed of politicians, both liberal and conservative, who have used the fear of crime to gain votes; impoverished rural areas where prisons have become a cornerstone of economic development; private companies that regard the roughly $35 billion spent each year on corrections not as a burden on American taxpayers but as a lucrative market. An interweaving of private business and government interests. (Aviram

The private prison system is like every other business, the main purpose of it is to make huge profits. Unlike other business, they are selling product or products. In order for a business to function, there have to be infrastructures that would allow that business to work effectively and efficiently. Another word there has to be a manufacture, a transportation system that carries the products after being made and final there is a store where customers can buy the products. The private prison system follows the formula. The products the private prison system is

The Inmate Work Act has fueled rapid expansion of Oregon prison industries in the past few years and has paved the way for many joint ventures” (Oregon). “In addition, during the last 20 years more than 30 states have passed laws permitting the use of convict labor by commercial enterprises. These programs now exist in 36 states” (Whyte).

There are approximately 2.2 million people that are currently incarcerated in the United States and roughly 65 million people have a current criminal record. 2.2 million individuals are detained due to past passive or violent offenses and some are wrongfully accused while capitalist companies are making a profit off of those incarcerated. The prison system is where violent and nonviolent inmates spend days or years in a cell and are usually working in the prison. During the early 1980s is when the inmate population began to grow in numbers fights would begin to be a daily occurrence and would ultimately result in murder. An example of these grotesque incidents would be considered a normal day at the Folsom State Prison in Sacramento,

The Prison Industrial Complex can be described as a contract or lease from a private corporation that allows them to contract convict labor. The government argues that they are merely converting public tax money when in reality it has only provided profit for private corporations. It serves two purposes. The first is

Prisoner outsourcing in the United States is originally attributed to New York’s Newgate Prison in 1802. The prison was able to contract with local manufactures, effectively offsetting rising prison costs. By 1825, prisons throughout the country, including Auburn, Baltimore, Charlestown, and Wethersfield, were realizing profits resulting from “prison contracted labor industries.”

As the number of prisoners have constantly been rising at an exceedly fast pace, several governments around the world have embraced the use of private prisons. Private prisons are confinements run by a third party, through an agreement with the government. In the United States, it is estimated that there are over 1.6 million inmates, of that there are 8% that are housed in privately-operated prisons. While the other 92% are housed in the public prison system. Private prisons have existed since the 19th century. Their use increased in the 20th century and continues to rise in some states. When a government makes an agreement with a private prison, it makes payments per prisoner or vacancy in jail on a regular basis for maintenance of the prisoners. Privatization became involved due to the fact that prisons were becoming overpopulated. Public prisons contracted the confinement and care of prisoners with other organizations. Due to the cost-effectiveness of private firms, prisons began to contract out more services, such as medical care, food service, inmate transportation, and vocational training. Over time private firms saw an opportunity for expansion and eventually took over entire prison operations. However, now their security, how they treat the inmates, and their true cost effectiveness has come into question

“The growth of private prison companies depends on rising incarceration rates and strict criminal sentencing laws.87 As “clients” of the private prison system, inmates are the main source of revenue to the companies responsible for their treatment and rehabilitation. To generate steady profits, these companies require a continual supply of new clients (first-time convicts) and a base of frequent, dependable clients (recidivist

The question that brings much controversy in today’s society should private enterprises be able to use prison inmates as a workforce. Even today there still has been no resolution. Much debate has also come from the question on what type of inmates should be able to work for the private enterprises. Given that the United States has the largest number of incarcerated people in the world, private enterprises should be able to use prisoners to perform various jobs. American prisons should allow private enterprise to hire convict laborers because it can have a positive effect on their attitude and behavior.

Currently, many prisons are beginning to be run by private corporations. If a company is running a prison then they need prisoners to stay in business. Around 1 in every 107 Americans is currently being housed in a prison. The United States has about 5 percent of the world’s population yet 25 percent of its prisoners(ACA, 2008). This is the easiest way to maintain a large prison population is by maintaining the current drug war. The largest private prison company in the United States is Corrections Corp. of America(ACA, 2008). In the last twenty years, CCA has donated nearly $5 million dollars to certain political

The debate over prison labor has existed as long as the concept it’s self. Opponents claim that it exploits prisoners, takes away jobs from the general population, and puts people in danger by allowing convicts access to their personal information. While supporters of prison labor argue that it helps the economy as well as benefits prisoners. On this issue I stand on the side of the supporters. By having prisoners work we are accomplishing several beneficial things. First, work keeps them occupied and out of trouble, instead of getting into confrontations with other inmates, they are actually doing something productive. Second, by working they are alleviating some of the high costs of keeping them

A free trade agreement is a set out arrangement by the governments of different countries which allows exports and imports to be done with more ease, and without the same tax rates. Three examples of free trade agreements that Australia currently holds with other nations include:

No strikes. No union organizing. No health benefits, unemployment insurance, or workers’ compensation to pay. No language barriers, as in foreign countries…all at a fraction of the cost of ‘free labor.’” (Goldberg & Evans). Prison labor is used in many of the top companies in the U.S., including IBM, Motorola, Compaq, Texas Instruments, Honeywell, Microsoft, and Boeing, Nordstrom, and Revlon. One of the most disturbing uses of prison labor is to make the nation’s graduation caps and gowns (Davis). The military even uses prison labor to make army uniforms (Gentilviso).

A bilateral trade agreement is a trade pact signed between two countries, providing special or favored trading status among them. Countries with bilateral gets expanded access to the markets of the agreed partner which helps increase trade and economic growth. Most bilateral trade agreements cover certain standardized aspects of trade such as the protection of each country’s innovative products, prevent the dumping products at a cheap cost, or using unfair subsidies to protect certain industries. The agreements may also cover standardize regulations on labor issues and environmental protections. Most importantly, bilateral trade agreements turn to eliminate tariffs and other trade taxes in order to gives companies within countries involved a price advantage.