Inmates still earn just 50c for a day's work in Irish prisons
1st April 2026
This article examines low prison wages in Ireland, where people earn as little as 50c per day for work while facing rising costs for basic goods. Saoirse Brady of the Irish Penal Reform Trust is quoted highlighting how inadequate pay places strain on people in prison and their families. The piece also outlines how low incomes can contribute to debt, vulnerability and inequality within prisons. IPRT calls for fairer pay to support dignity, rehabilitation and reintegration.
Read the full article here.
Related items:
- Prison overcrowding group to meet after capacity crisis warning
- Continued reliance on ‘single separation' of children at Oberstown detention centre
- IPRT Submission to the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights on the fourth Universal Periodic Review of Ireland
- Crime and class Who really ends up behind bars in Ireland?
- Life after prison - David McCullagh Show RTE Radio 1
