US EditionNewsom Signs Bill Authorizing Historic Pay Raises for Inmate Firefighters
Legislation raises pay for incarcerated firefighters to $7.25 per hour during active fires, reflecting years of advocacy and providing improved protections for over 1,800 workers.
- On Monday, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed five bills raising incarcerated firefighters' pay to the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour during active fires.
- After January's blazes that deployed more than 1,000 incarcerated firefighters, state lawmakers introduced a seven-bill `Firefighting to Freedom` package this year to improve pay and protections.
- Previously, incarcerated firefighters earned between $5.80 and $10.24 per day, received $1 per hour during emergencies, and Assembly Bill 799 provides a $50,000 death benefit with a $10 million state budget allocation this year.
- The Youth Offender Program will be established permanently under Assembly Bill 952 to train inmates under 25 for firefighting, with advocacy groups backing reforms and the California State Sheriffs' Association opposing the pay increase.
- Supporters argue Assemblymember Isaac Bryan initially sought $19 per hour but settled on the federal minimum wage, even as wages remain far below California's $16.50 hourly rate.
14 Articles
14 Articles
California’s incarcerated firefighters to see ‘historic’ pay increase with new laws
Inmate firefighters dig a firebreak as the Thompson fire burns on July 2, 2024, in Oroville. (File photo by Ethan Swope/Associated Press) This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters. Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a set of bills this week meant to recognize incarcerated firefighters, including a historic measure to raise their pay to meet the federal minimum wage during active fires. The wage increase, funded thro…
Newsom signs bill authorizing historic pay raises for inmate firefighters
Incarcerated individuals have long been putting their lives in danger to help battle some of California's largest wildland fires, and soon they'll be getting a raise. On Monday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law Assembly Bill 247, which clears the way for inmates serving part of their sentence on the front lines to make at least the federal minimum wage. Previously, incarcerated firefighters could earn credit toward their sentences fo…
Young California inmates learn skills to fight wildfires
By ETHAN SWOPE and TRÂN NGUYỄN, Associated Press Inmate firefighters in California will receive higher pay and the state will make permanent firefighting camps that train and educate young offenders under two laws signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom. RELATED: These are the wildfire-related bills the California Legislature OK’d this year California state agencies and the Los Angeles County fire department run 35 “fire camps” where inmates train to become…
New California laws increase pay for incarcerated firefighters
Hundreds of them will see an increase in pay, a new death benefit and a faster path to expungement of their criminal records. This content California’s incarcerated firefighters to see ‘historic’ pay increase in laws Newsom signed appeared first on inewsource.
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