27th February 2023
Following an external tendering process, IPRT is pleased to annouce that Dr Joe Garrihy and Dr Ciara Bracken-Roche from Maynooth University School of Law and Criminology were successfully awarded the research contract for 'Working With Conviction'.
They will be working with IPRT over the coming months to undertake a study on the barriers to employment for individuals with previous convictions and whether they face discrimination in accessing decent and sufficient work, which can in turn impact their right to an adequate standard of living and economic equality.
Dr Garrihy and Dr Bracken-Roche have researched areas including the experiences and rights of minority ethnic and Foreign National Prisoners, ‘cocooning’ in Irish prisons, how privacy legislation can be mobilised for social good and have considerable expertise in the area of people with convictions following their work on Unlocking Potential.
IPRT has been awarded funding from the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission (IHREC) under the Human Rights and Equality Grants Scheme 2022-2023 under Theme A ‘Advancing Greater Economic Equality’, to conduct a small-scale analysis of the attitudes of employers and the experiences of people with convictions in accessing decent work.
The aim of the project is to determine the types of barriers that exist for individuals with a criminal conviction in accessing decent and sufficient work and assess the impact that this has on their ability to achieve economic equality. The project will provide up-to-date data on the attitudes of employers toward hiring people with experience of the criminal justice system and/or prison.
We are grateful to the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission for supporting this timely piece of work under the Human Rights and Equality Grants Scheme 2022-2023.
Open Doors Initiative are providing additional support to the project to strengthen the research capacity and analysis carried out.
Respect for rights in the penal system with prison as a last resort.