Thread by @reveal

1/ The Cenikor Foundation is one of the U.S.’s most lucrative work-based rehabs.

It pulls in millions by sending patients to work for companies like @walmart, @shell and @exxonmobil – and keeping their pay.

Its entire business model may be illegal. revealnews.org/article/they-w…

2/ Cenikor’s success is built on a simple idea: That work helps people recover from addiction. All participants have to do is surrender their pay to cover the costs of the program.

3/ The problem, though, is that the constant work leaves little time for counseling or treatment.

“It’s like the closest thing to slavery,” one patient said. He worked 10 hours per day, laying steel rebar in 115-degree heat.

4/ Another described working for 43 days straight in a sweltering warehouse in Texas, unloading cargo containers for @walmart.

5/ On-the-job injuries were common. One patient even died.

Yet records show that Cenikor staff routinely cancelled doctor’s visits to send patients to work. The patients worked 80-hour weeks, which left little time for treatment or sleep.

6/ Multiple former staff told @amyjharris and @shoeshine that counselors routinely falsified counseling records to make it appear as though clients received more counseling than they did.

During busy work seasons, some clients received no counseling at all.

7/ The rehab insists it’s following the law. The program, they said, offers “a career path for clients to be hired by companies who traditionally do not hire those with felony convictions, allowing them to return to a life of being a responsible, contributing member of society.”

8/ Also: Many people we talked to said Cenikor saved their lives and prepared them for success later on.

The program has a long history of accolades from sitting lawmakers and judges – and even former President Ronald Reagan.

9/ Yet according to Cenikor’s own numbers, fewer than 8 percent of the people who enter the program make it to graduation.

10/ Despite its reliance on work, Cenikor has frequently skimped on providing safety training or giving clients basic protective gear.

One worker shattered his knee. Two broke their backs. Others have crushed their hands and contracted staph infections.

11/ The company has been warned repeatedly to make sure clients are safe on the job. Its officials “should take more of an active role in providing quality training” officials with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration wrote.

documentcloud.org/documents/5030…

12/ Yet injuries have continued to rack up. In 2018, Cenikor sent Matthew Oates to a private residence to trim trees without a safety harness, helmet or rope. He fell and broke his back.

13/ Labor experts say that the whole arrangement could be illegal under The Fair Labor Standards Act, which requires all employees to be paid minimum wage and overtime.

14/ “They have to look at a different way to run their business operation other than merely absconding with the worker’s wages,” said Michael Hancock, a former Department of Labor official, when presented with our findings. “They're being preyed upon.”

15/ This story is part of our ongoing “All Work. No Pay” series, which investigates rehabs across the U.S. that force patients to work for free in exchange for treatment.

Got a story about one of these rehabs? Tell us here: reveal.forms.fm/what-s-your-ex…

16/ Since we started reporting on this issue, we’ve heard about dozens of similar facilities across the U.S.

It’s far more than we could ever report on our own.

Want to join our network of local reporters and get access to tips? Do that here: revealnews.org/network/

17/ For more on this investigation, check out our brand-new documentary with @AJFaultLines:

18/ Finally, we’re staying on this story. To never miss another investigation from us, be sure to subscribe to our newsletter: revealnews.org/newsletter