CHARACTERISTICS OF FEMALE PRISONERS A few weeks in prison are enough to lose your home, children and job and cause harm to mental health. Because women are often primary carers, when a mother is sent to prison, in nine out of 10 cases her children will have to leave their home to go into the care system or to live with relatives. Chief Executive of UK charity Women in Prison CONTEXT: Unemployment rate of former prisoners Studies in the US demonstrate that former prisoners have significantly higher rates of unemployment compared to the general population. A recent analysis showed that in 2018, former prisoners were unemployed at a rate of over 27 per cent – which is higher than the total US unemployment rate during any historical period and nearly five times higher than the current unemployment rate for the general population.49 The study established that former prisoners want to work, but face barriers to securing employment – particularly within the period immediately following release – including employers’ unwillingness to hire former prisoners. Significantly, the unemployment rate of former women prisoners was higher than for men, with the unemployment rate of black or Hispanic populations higher still. UNEMPLOYMENT RATE OF FORMER PRISONERS Women in prison Men in prison Hispanic 39% 26% Black 40% 35% White 23% 18% 18 | Penal Reform International and Thailand Institute of Justice | Guide to the rehabilitation and social reintegration of women prisoners