Hundreds of incarcerated firefighters have been deployed to help battle the fires raging across the Los Angeles area, with some working 24-hour shifts for as little as $26.90, or just over $1 an hour.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation told The Guardian that it had deployed 395 incarcerated firefighters to help battle the blazes.
The firefighters, who have “minimum custody” status, have been embedded with the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, which has deployed thousands of firefighting to the area.
The CDCR, jointly with Cal Fire and the Los Angeles County Fire Department, runs 35 “fire camps” across 25 California counties. Participation is voluntary, with inmates using hand tools to aid in fire suppression and other emergency responses.
The camps are considered minimum-security facilities.
California, which is grappling with longer and more destructive fire seasons amid the climate crisis, has long relied on incarcerated people for its response. In fact, the CDCR crews have, at times, accounted for as much as 30% of the state’s wildfire force.
According to the CDCR, fire crew members earn between $5.80 and $10.24 a day, depending on their skill level, with an additional $1 per hour for active emergency assignments.
Crews can work 24-hour shifts during emergencies, followed by 24 hours of rest, it said, with the lowest-skilled firefighters earning $26.90 and the highest-skilled maxing out at about $34.
For context, California’s minimum wage is $16.50 per hour, with some areas, such as West Hollywood, offering higher minimum wages.
In California, inmates are not guaranteed the state’s minimum wage, and some earn as little as 16 cents per hour.
The $10.24 basic rate for the highest-skilled incarcerated firefighters ranks among the best daily rate for incarcerated people in the state.
In addition to pay, fire crews helping out during emergencies like this receive “time credits” on a two-for-one basis, meaning that for each day they serve on the crew, they receive two additional days off their sentence.
Participation can also lead to criminal record expungement and the ability to seek professional emergency response certifications.
The CDCR did not immediately respond to Business Insider’s request for comment.
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