GPS RESEARCH LIBRARY: Economic Exploitation in Prison: Wages, Fees, and the Poverty Cycle ============================================================ Georgia Prisoners' Speak — gps.press Generated: 2026-04-17 00:15:59 EDT Research Date: 2026-04-09 Topic: Prison Economics/Poverty JSON: https://gps.press/research-data/economic-exploitation-in-prison-wages-fees-and-the-poverty-cycle/?format=json SUMMARY ---------------------------------------- This first-person essay by incarcerated writer Demetrius Buckley, published by the Vera Institute of Justice, documents the economic exploitation of incarcerated people and their families in Michigan prisons. Key findings include average prison wages of $12-$16/month, mandatory labor enforced by threat of solitary confinement, and data showing 65% of families with incarcerated loved ones cannot meet basic needs due to court-related debt averaging over $13,000. The piece contextualizes mass incarceration as a driver of poverty in Black and brown communities and introduces Vera's new Incarceration and Inequality Project (IIP) Data Explorer tool. STATISTICS (8) ---------------------------------------- - [reported] Average Michigan prison wages: $12-$16 per month Incarcerated people in Michigan prisons earn an average of $12 to $16 per month from prison jobs, depending on their court circumstance and job description. Value: 12.0 dollars per month (low end) (vs. 16 dollars per month (high end)) Tags: conditions,budget,policy Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [confirmed] 65% of families with incarcerated loved ones unable to meet basic needs According to a survey by the Ella Baker Center, roughly 65 percent of families with a loved one in prison were unable to meet their basic needs because court-related fines and fees sent them into debt of more than $13,000 on average. Value: 65.0 percent of families Tags: budget,conditions,demographics Sources: Ella Baker Center survey on families and incarceration costs - [confirmed] Average court-related debt exceeds $13,000 per family Court-related fines and fees send families with an incarcerated loved one into debt of more than $13,000 on average, according to the Ella Baker Center. Value: 13000.0 dollars (average debt) Tags: budget,legal,conditions Sources: Ella Baker Center survey on families and incarceration costs - [confirmed] 58% of families cannot afford costs associated with conviction According to the Prison Policy Initiative, 58 percent of families could not afford 'the costs associated with a conviction.' Value: 58.0 percent of families Tags: budget,conditions,demographics Sources: Prison Policy Initiative: Costs associated with conviction - [reported] Commissary shoes cost $70+ The institution offered access to vendors that supply shoes costing more than $70 to incarcerated people via kiosk ordering. Value: 70.0 dollars (minimum shoe cost) Tags: conditions,budget Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [reported] Securepak food orders cost up to $150 Securepak orders (food items) available to incarcerated people cost up to $150. Value: 150.0 dollars (maximum food package cost) Tags: conditions,budget Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [reported] Tablet costs with entertainment exceed $500 A tablet available to incarcerated people, including the purchase of music and games, can be worth more than $500. Value: 500.0 dollars (total tablet cost with content) Tags: conditions,budget Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [reported] Footlocker storage costs $150 Author paid $150 for an aluminum footlocker from Michigan State Industries to store belongings beyond the one green duffle bag limit per person. Items that cannot fit inside the duffle bag are labeled contraband and destroyed. Value: 150.0 dollars Tags: conditions,budget,contraband Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty POLICYS (2) ---------------------------------------- - [reported] Mandatory labor in Michigan prisons enforced by threat of solitary Labor in Michigan prisons is mandatory. Not participating in the job pool could lead the incarcerated person to long-time isolation. Tags: policy,solitary,conditions Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [reported] Incarcerated people's property limited to one duffle bag Incarcerated people in Michigan prisons are limited to one green duffle bag per person. Any item that can't fit inside is labeled contraband and destroyed. Tags: policy,conditions,contraband Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty TRENDS (1) ---------------------------------------- - [reported] Tariff-driven price increases burden incarcerated people and families since 2025 Since 2020, incarcerated people have been receiving email blasts explaining price spikes in clothing and food items available from the kiosk. In 2025, the price rose again due to tariff wars, further burdening incarcerated people and their families. Tags: conditions,budget Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty FINDINGS (4) ---------------------------------------- - [reported] Poorest communities most policed and funneled into prison The poorest communities are the ones most policed and funneled into prison. A high percentage of incarcerated bodies are poor Black and brown people. Tags: demographics,conditions,policy Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [reported] Vendors target families rather than incarcerated people for payment Vendors offering shoes, food packages, tablets, and other items aim not for the incarcerated person to pay, but their family and friends, given that prison wages of $12-$16/month are wholly insufficient to cover these costs. Tags: budget,conditions Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [reported] Paying debt to society does not repair victims' families Paying a debt to society has less to do with repairing the victim's family's true desires, especially when both victim and perpetrator are from the same demographics. The author's time and money went to MDOC rather than to victims or communities. Tags: policy,conditions,reentry Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [confirmed] Vera Institute launches Incarceration and Inequality Project Data Explorer Vera's new Incarceration and Inequality Project (IIP) Data Explorer is an interactive tool that gives advocates and policymakers ready access to data on the connection between incarceration and economic indicators—both nationally and within their counties. Date: 2026-04-03 Tags: policy,demographics,budget Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty LEGAL FACTS (1) ---------------------------------------- - [confirmed] Constitutional provision allows prisoners to be in servitude The United States Constitution declares prisoners to be in servitude, which the author characterizes as being 'a slave to the economic serving of the state.' Tags: legal,policy,conditions Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty CASE DETAILS (1) ---------------------------------------- - [reported] Court-ordered fees and restitutions garnished from trust accounts Upon sentencing in 2010, court-ordered fees and restitutions were set to be garnished from a trust account set up by the state for the incarcerated person, establishing the economic framework for incarceration from the outset. Date: 2010-01-01 Tags: legal,budget,conditions Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty QUOTES (4) ---------------------------------------- - [confirmed] Quote: Economic exploitation of incarcerated people by MDOC "My time and money went to MDOC, which makes top dollar off me and other incarcerated people." Date: 2026-04-03 Tags: conditions,budget Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [confirmed] Quote: It cost money to be poor "It cost money to be poor, and it seemed to be a major reason for crime to run rampant in low-income neighborhoods." Date: 2026-04-03 Tags: demographics,conditions Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [confirmed] Quote: Paying a debt to society has less to do with repairing the victim's family "Paying a debt to society has less to do with helping or repairing the victim's family's true desires, especially if both victim and perpetrator are from the same demographic." Date: 2026-04-03 Tags: conditions,policy,reentry Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty - [confirmed] Quote: Vendors target families not incarcerated people "Those vendors aim not for the incarcerated person to pay, but their family and friends." Date: 2026-04-03 Tags: budget,conditions Sources: Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty DATASETS (1) ---------------------------------------- # Commissary and Prison Product Costs in Michigan Prisons Costs of various items and services available to incarcerated people in Michigan prisons as reported by the author circa 2020-2025. Item Cost ------------------------------------------------------------- Shoes (via vendor) $70+ Securepak food order Up to $150 Tablet with music and games $500+ Aluminum footlocker (Michigan State Industries) $150 Monthly prison wages (low end) $12 Monthly prison wages (high end) $16 KEY ENTITIES (8) ---------------------------------------- - Demetrius Buckley [person]: Incarcerated writer who has served 16+ years of a 20-year sentence for second-degree murder in Michigan. Author of the essay published by Vera Institute. - Ella Baker Center for Human Rights [organization]: Civil rights organization that published the foundational 2015 'Who Pays?' study on family costs of incarceration (aka: Ella Baker Center) - Incarceration and Inequality Project [program]: Vera Institute interactive data tool providing advocates and policymakers access to data on the connection between incarceration and economic indicators nationally and by county. (aka: IIP, IIP Data Explorer) - Michigan Department of Corrections [organization]: Michigan state corrections agency that contracted with Aramark (2013-2015) and Trinity Services Group (2015-2018) for food service before returning to in-house operations in 2018. (aka: MDOC) - Michigan State Industries [organization]: State-linked vendor that sells products such as aluminum footlockers to incarcerated people in Michigan prisons. - Prison Policy Initiative [organization]: Research and advocacy organization focused on prison conditions; published Cut-rate Care and Chronic Punishment reports (aka: PPI) - Securepak [organization]: Vendor that supplies food package orders to incarcerated people costing up to $150. - Vera Institute of Justice [organization]: Research organization focused on criminal justice; published Health Care Behind Bars report (2025) (aka: Vera Institute, Vera) SOURCES (3) ---------------------------------------- - Ella Baker Center survey on families and incarceration costs, Ella Baker Center for Human Rights [official_report, primary] - Paying for Prison: How Incarceration Reinforces Poverty, Vera Institute of Justice by Demetrius Buckley (2026-04-03) [journalism, primary] URL: https://www.vera.org/news/paying-for-prison-how-incarceration-reinforces-poverty - Prison Policy Initiative: Costs associated with conviction, Prison Policy Initiative [official_report, primary]