ENROLLED
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Regular Session, 2014
HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON NO. 34
BY REPRESENTATIVES SMITH, BARROW, HILL, KATRINA JACKSON, MORENO,
NORTON, ST. GERMAIN, THIERRY, AND WOODRUFF AND SENATORS
BROOME AND PETERSON
A CONCURRENT RESOLUTI ON
To commend the Department of Public Safety and Corrections for moving the mobile
welding unit from the Louisiana State Penitentiary to the Louisiana Correctional
Institute for Women to begin offering female inmates education and training
programs for nontraditional, high-demand, and high-wage jobs.
WHEREAS, nationally, the wage gap between men and women improved slightly
from 2011 to 2012 according to the latest United States census data with women now
earning approximately seventy-eight cents on average to every dollar a man earns; and
WHEREAS, during this same period of time, despite an increasing number of women
in the Louisiana workforce (forty-eight percent of full-time, year-round Louisiana labor
force) according to a report by the Louisiana Women's Policy and Research Commission,
the gender wage gap in Louisiana actually grew wider with women earning approximately
sixty-six cents for every dollar earned by a Louisiana man; and
WHEREAS, engaging women in nontraditional employment, which includes any
occupation that employs far fewer women than men such as trades, crafts, technology, and
science fields, offers several benefits that enable women to become economically self-
sufficient, support their families, and build assets to obtain a home or pursue a higher
education; and
WHEREAS, with more than $60 billion of plant expansions and new plants
announced in Louisiana, according to the Louisiana Women's Policy and Research
Commission report, Louisiana faces an industry demand for more than 86,300 new skilled
crafts workers through 2016, creating opportunities for women in Louisiana to pursue high-
wage careers; and ENROLLEDHCR NO. 34
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WHEREAS, according to the Louisiana Women's Policy and Research Commission
report, researchers have concluded that if more women pursue nontraditional occupations,
such as those in the skilled crafts, the wage gap between men and women is expected to
decrease; and
WHEREAS, pipefitters, boilermakers, carpenters, electricians, instrumentation
technicians, insulators, ironworkers, millwrights, heavy equipment operators, laborers, sheet
metal workers, plumbers, and welders will be in high demand in Louisiana; and
WHEREAS, over 201,000 women are held in penal institutions throughout the
United States with female prisoners making up over eight percent of the United States prison
system; and
WHEREAS, in 2012, 2,389 women in Louisiana were incarcerated, making up six
percent of all inmates in Louisiana, and women released from Louisiana state prisons face
high rates of unemployment and recidivism which reflect the challenge these women face
in reentering society and assuming mainstream social roles upon their release; and
WHEREAS, the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women (LCIW) is the only
female correctional facility operating at the state level, and as of October 2013, LCIW only
offered its female inmates a job and life skills course and upholstery and culinary arts
training; and
WHEREAS, until recently, the workforce development programs at LCIW did not
train female inmates for high-demand careers in contrast to the job training provided at
men's correctional facilities, which prepare males for more lucrative potential careers upon
release; and
WHEREAS, in order to help reduce recidivism and increase employment
opportunities for incarcerated women upon their release, a high priority must be placed on
aligning the educational and training programs at LCIW with high-wage jobs, particularly
high-demand craft occupations currently driving the Louisiana economy; and
WHEREAS, the Department of Public Safety and Corrections announced that it will
move the mobile welding unit from the Louisiana State Penitentiary to LCIW in April of
2014 to begin offering female inmates education and training programs in nontraditional,
high-demand, and high-wage jobs. ENROLLEDHCR NO. 34
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THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Legislature of Louisiana, in conjunction
with the Louisiana Legislative Women's Caucus and the Louisiana Women's Policy and
Research Commission, does hereby commend the Department of Public Safety and
Corrections for moving the welding unit from the Louisiana State Penitentiary to the
Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women to begin offering female inmates education and
training programs for nontraditional, high-demand, and high-wage jobs.
SPEAKER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATI VES
PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE