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Inquest
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Feb 5, 2026
“I Was Just a Body”
Temp agencies rely on a constant stream of formerly incarcerated workers to keep jobs unstable and wages low.
Orlando Weekly
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Jan 30, 2026
Florida lawmakers unanimously advance bill to expand protections for temp workers
The bill would make it easier for temp workers to secure stable jobs and establish accountability measures for exploitative temp agencies.
In These Times
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May 1, 2025
Building Bridges and Erasing Jail Debt: Katherine Passley
The winner of our Labor Organizer of the Year Award co-runs a member-led worker center in Miami for people with criminal records and their families — the first organization of its kind in the country.
The Guardian
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Nov 18, 2025
Florida workers with criminal records trapped by temp agencies, report finds
The Guardian covers Beyond the Bars’ Temp Trap report and its central finding: workers with records are systematically funneled into the most dangerous and unstable jobs—driving down wages and standards across the labor market.
The Real News Network
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Dec 1, 2025
How prisons and temp agencies exploit the most vulnerable workers
“Historically, temp workers and prison labor… [have] been used to bust union strikes,” Katherine Passley of Beyond the Bars says. “Well, what would it look like if we were to bring those people into the union so that they can’t bust these union efforts?”
Labor Notes
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Dec 17, 2025
From Temp Trap to Union Jobs: Building Pathways for Workers with Criminal Records
By raising standards in the temp industry and building pathways for workers with records into union jobs, we can create a labor market where stability and dignity aren’t reserved for the few. If we fail to organize these workers, we surrender the terrain on which the future of work, and the possibility of freedom, is being built.
all news
2026
The Real News Network
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Jan 20, 2026
Florida’s temp industry extends incarceration into the workplace
Orlando Weekly
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Jan 30, 2026
Florida lawmakers unanimously advance bill to expand protections for temp workers
2025
Labor Notes
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Dec 17, 2025
From Temp Trap to Union Jobs: Building Pathways for Workers with Criminal Records
The Orlando Weekly
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Dec 3, 2025
Advocates urge Disney to investigate alleged use of prison labor to make character balloons
The Real News Network
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Dec 1, 2025
How prisons and temp agencies exploit the most vulnerable workers
The Guardian
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Nov 18, 2025
Florida workers with criminal records trapped by temp agencies, report finds
Southern Worker Assembly
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Oct 24, 2025
Dark Work: Precarious Labor and the Southern Economy
The Real News Network
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Jul 28, 2025
America is built on prison labor. When will the labor movement defend prisoners?
Orlando Weekly
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May 6, 2025
Worker advocates manage to kill Florida bill that would have eliminated labor protections for temp workers.
In These Times
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May 1, 2025
Building Bridges and Erasing Jail Debt: Katherine Passley
Orlando Weekly
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Apr 22, 2025
Florida Republican doubles down on false claim that Florida has state OSHA
2024
BOLTS
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Jan 8, 2024
San Francisco Expands Free Jail Communications by Adding Tablet Services
Harvard Law School
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Nov 19, 2024
Expanding Labor’s Reach into Carceral Reform
Fines & Fees Justice Center
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Apr 23, 2024
How Miami-Dade County Led on Local Fee Elimination
Miami Herald
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Apr 2, 2024
No more $100 ankle monitors as Miami-Dade ends inmate fees in county jails.
2023
Florida International University
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Sep 15, 2023
Meet a new crop of superstars: young alumni who are crushing it.
Miami Herald
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Sep 8, 2023
Miami-Dade budget advances after pleas to fund housing, animal services and charities.
WLRN Public Media
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Aug 31, 2023
Clock is ticking' on Miami−Dade jails to reduce high number of inmate deaths