26 thousand convicts were forced to do forced labor

As of August 2023, more than 26 thousand convicts in Russia were involved in forced labor in various industries. This was reported by the Federal Service for the Execution of Orders in response to a request from “Vedomosti”.

According to the FSIN, the convicts work in construction and mechanical engineering, agriculture and housing and communal services, light and chemical industry, food and furniture production, logging and woodworking, as well as mining and other industries. In total, they are involved in work in 1,700 organizations. From October 2023, individual entrepreneurs will be able to use their labor.

We are talking mainly about those sentenced to forced labor. Amendments adopted in 2020 made it possible to hire them in private companies. They can also attract those deprived of freedom to work, but this is connected with a number of restrictions – in particular, a convoy is necessary.

According to the FSIN, those sentenced to forced labor are in “huge demand” from employers, who use them to combat the shortage of personnel. In particular, Ozon and “Sber” attract convicts to labor. It was also reported about the plans to attract their labor by the Rostec Corporation – the largest company of the Russian military industry.

In some cases, forced labor may be ordered by the court as an alternative to deprivation of liberty. Convicts live in so-called correctional centers, where the regime is more lenient than in colonies. At the same time, they are obliged to work at an enterprise that will be determined by the FSIN. Convicts cannot refuse work – they must work exactly where they are sent. At the same time, it is said that their health condition and work skills are taken into account.

In March 2023, the FSIN reported that it had created 367 correctional centers with the possibility of accommodating more than 40,000 convicts in them to serve the alternative punishment of imprisonment in the form of forced labor. By 2024, the number of places in such centers is planned to increase to 80,000.

• Those convicted of crimes of minor gravity are brought to forced labor. For prisoners who committed more serious crimes last year, there was another alternative – they would go to the front as part of the “Wagner” PMC. This year, as reported, the Ministry of Defense continued the recruitment of prisoners.