The production of quality products and services for DEPTCOR customers is an extremely high priority. But it is ultimately a means to an end. The highest priority is to prepare the inmates, through job training and skill development, for their return to society. The employment of inmates provides both economic and rehabilitative advantages.

1. Job Training
   Incarceration alone cannot rehabilitate the typical offender. DEPTCOR plays an integral role in rehabilitation by providing inmates the opportunity to learn how to become responsible citizens. Inmates employed by Correctional Industries are more likely to become employed and earn slightly more money than similar inmates who did not participate.* A man or woman able to earn a living through legal means is less likely to commit future crimes, thus reducing recidivism.
   
   (*Post Release Employment Project conducted by the Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Prisons, Office of Research & Evaluation; Revised 1992)
    
2. Reduced Violence and Disruption
   Idleness increases the potential for disorder and aggravates criminal tendencies. When inmates are constructively working, the safety and security of the institutions are at less risk. DEPTCOR employs over 3,000 inmates annually, providing a significant positive impact on reducing prison misconduct.
    
3. Reduced Taxpayer Costs
   DEPTCOR operates from sales revenue rather than appropriated funds, thus lowering the annual prison costs to taxpayers by millions of dollars. Further savings are realized through the reduced prices DEPTCOR offers to its customers, who are tax-supported agencies. According to a 1996 Office of Legislative Services audit, $2.1 million in taxpayer savings was realized for fiscal year 1995 through those reduced prices.
    
4. Satisfied Citizen Expectations
   The public believes that inmates should "do hard time." DEPTCOR provides the opportunity for inmates to do productive work, rather than indulge in idleness. Inmates are behind sewing machines, operating printing presses, typing, building sheds, pouring concrete, constructing furniture, loading trucks, moving boxes, stamping out license plates, and performing many other tasks.

By providing work for inmates, DEPTCOR also provides jobs for civilians. DEPTCOR employs 170 state employees and generates thousands of private sector jobs. DEPTCOR purchases its wide array of raw materials from vendors throughout New Jersey and across the United States who employ private citizens to manufacture and transport the raw materials.