From Firelines to Frontlines: It’s Time to Hire Formerly Incarcerated Firefighters — and Pay Them What They Deserve

California Department of Corrections inmates work alongside CalFire to put out fires. ABC 10 - Photo Credit to Eric Escalante

In California, incarcerated people have long served as the invisible backbone of our wildfire response system. For just a few dollars a day — sometimes as little as $2 — they’ve risked their lives on the frontlines, cutting fire lines, breathing toxic smoke, and battling back flames to protect communities they weren’t even allowed to return to after release.

I know what it means to work for redemption. Like many others who’ve done their time, I used that time to reflect, grow, and find a purpose beyond prison walls. But one of the hardest things for people reentering society isn’t facing fire — it’s facing rejection.

The state trains incarcerated individuals to fight fires, but then slams the door shut once they’re free. Until recently, most of those trained behind bars weren’t even eligible to apply for firefighting jobs because of their records. While some changes have been made to open up certification pathways, the truth is that the vast majority still struggle to find meaningful employment after release — and certainly not at a livable wage.

Simply put.... it's unfair. When someone performs dangerous, skilled labor — the same labor that earns others $70,000+ a year — but gets paid less than minimum wage and then denied the chance to use those skills after release, that’s not rehabilitation. That’s injustice.

But it doesn’t have to stay this way.

The community, including local governments need to work with individuals who return home who have completed their training, and have a strong desire to contribute. Especially for those who served as an inmate firefighter. They were team leaders. Medics. Logistics coordinators. Some risked their lives during record-breaking fire seasons. They didn’t quit when things got tough — they doubled down, often pushing past exhaustion and injury with nothing but a brown sack lunch and pride in their work.

These men and women earned more than just time off their sentences. They earned a second chance.

Yet when they apply for jobs, they get shut down. Land a fire job interview, and the background check throws it out. Apply for warehouse or union labor jobs, and the pay is barely enough to survive. Employers say things like, “We respect what you did — but we’re not hiring right now.” Or worse, they say nothing at all.

If the state of California values these workers enough to place them on the front lines during wildfires, it must also value them enough to pay them fair wages, provide reentry support, and remove employment barriers once they come home.

We need to stop treating prison labor as a substitute for rehabilitation and start treating formerly incarcerated people like the trained, qualified, and capable members of society they are. That begins by:

Ensuring all prison firefighting programs provide the certifications and licensing needed for post-release employment.

Passing legislation that prohibits employment discrimination for those trained as firefighters inside.

Creating state-funded pipelines from prison camps to paid, full-time positions with Cal Fire, local departments, and emergency response organizations.

Raising wages for incarcerated firefighters to reflect the real value and risk of their labor.

Because if you can trust a man to save your home from burning, you should be able to trust him enough to offer him a job once he's free.

Reentry isn’t just about letting people out. It’s about bringing them in — into the workforce, into the community, into opportunity. When we block that path, we not only punish individuals who’ve already served their time — we rob our communities of some of the most resilient, hard-working, and committed people among us.

To those who fought fires behind bars and came home to closed doors: we see you. We believe in your future. And we’re fighting alongside you for a better tomorrow — one where the value of your labor is recognized, your rights are restored, and your place in the community is no longer in question.

It’s time California walked the talk on rehabilitation. Because no one should have to risk their life to earn a second chance — and no one who does should be denied the dignity of a real job when that chance finally comes.