The Department of Corrections (DOC) operates a comprehensive work program for incarcerated persons through the Correctional Industries (CI) program.  Correctional Industries develops and implements programs that offer employment, work experience, and training to incarcerated persons.  Correctional Industries employs approximately 2,200 incarcerated persons across the following five classes of industries:

• Class I industries, or "free venture industries," include both employer model and customer model industries.  Employer model Class I industries are operated and managed by for-profit or nonprofit organizations under contract with the DOC to produce goods and services for sale to both the public and private sector.  The DOC is responsible for supplying security and custody services to these industries without charge.  Customer model Class I industries are operated and managed by the DOC to produce and provide Washington businesses with products or services currently available only from out-of-state or foreign suppliers.  Under both models, Class I workers are paid according to the prevailing wage for comparable work in that locality as determined by the Director of CI (Director) or, if the Director is unable to make a determination, at least the federal minimum wage, which is $7.25 an hour as of January 6, 2023.
• Class II industries, or "tax reduction industries," are state-owned and operated industries designed to reduce the costs for goods and services for public agencies and nonprofit organizations.  Products and services generated by Class II industries may generally only be sold to public agencies and nonprofit organizations.  Class II workers are compensated based on a gratuity scale approved by the Director which must not exceed the wage paid for work of a similar nature in the locality where the industry is located.
• Class III industries, or "institutional support industries," are operated by the DOC and are designed to give incarcerated persons basic work training and experience and to offset public support costs.  Except for those in a training program, Class III workers are compensated based on a gratuity scale adopted by the Secretary of the DOC.
• Class IV industries, or "community work industries," are operated by the DOC and provide services at reduced cost to public agencies, persons who are poor or infirm, and nonprofit organizations in the local community.  Local government agencies utilizing this service must pay the worker's wage and provide work supervision services without charge.  Class IV workers are paid a gratuity not to exceed the wage paid for comparable work in that locality.
• Class V programs, or "community service programs," are court ordered community work performed without financial compensation.

An incarcerated person who receives a wage or gratuity from working in a prison industry is subject to various deductions from the person's gross income depending on the industry classification, including deductions for the Crime Victims' Compensation Account, the incarcerated person's personal savings account, the cost of incarceration, legal financial obligations, payment of any civil judgment for Assault against a correctional officer or DOC employee, and child support payments.  The actual amount to be deducted for those reasons from an incarcerated person's income may be determined by various entities, such as the sentencing court, the DOC, and the Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), subject to specific statutory limits on such deductions.  The following maximum deductions from an incarcerated person's gross income are authorized depending on the incarcerated person's income source and industry classification:

The DOC must utilize a system that links an incarcerated person's behavior and participation in available education and work programs with the receipt or denial of earned early release days and other privileges.  Eligible incarcerated persons who refuse to participate in available education or work programs available at no charge to the incarcerated individuals may lose additional privileges and incentives as established by the DOC.  For example, an incarcerated person may not receive earned early release days during any time in which the person refuses to participate in an available work program the person has been placed in.

The DOC operates a Work Ethic Program, which is a structured alternative to traditional incarceration that requires participants to complete a comprehensive array of job and vocational experiences, character building work ethic training, life management skills development, substance abuse rehabilitation, counseling, and education.

Participation in Correctional Industries work programs is made voluntary, except that a court may order a defendant to perform community restitution.  The DOC may not issue infractions or engage in punitive actions against any incarcerated person who refuses to participate in work programs.  Incarcerated persons working in Class I, II, III, or IV industries must be paid a wage or gratuity no less than the state minimum wage.  Provisions authorizing courts and the DOC to impose and collect the cost of incarceration from defendants and incarcerated persons are eliminated.  Instead, the DOC may deduct up to 10 percent from an incarcerated person's income for debts owed to the DOC.  The maximum authorized deductions from an incarcerated person's gross income depending on the incarcerated person's income source and industry classification are adjusted to the following percentages:
 

By October 1, 2023, the DOC must submit a report to the Governor and the Legislature containing the following information:

• itemized costs of items and services charged to incarcerated persons under specific statutory authority and DOC policy;
• the average debts owed by incarcerated persons to the DOC for such items and services;
• the average percentage paid by an average incarcerated person to the DOC for such items and services prior to release from confinement;
• the average debts owed by incarcerated persons to the DOC for such items and services upon release from confinement; and
• the total amount of debt owed by all persons, regardless of incarceration status, to the DOC for such items and services. 

Provisions authorizing the DOC to operate a Work Ethic Program are repealed.