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Apr 26 • 6 tweets • 2 min read
My local union, #IBEW 617 of San Mateo, is accepting applications for the 5-year inside wireman apprenticeship. Starting pay is $24.50/hr, journeyman wage is $74/hr. Formerly incarcerated people are free to apply! smjatc617.org/applications/
This is a way to go to school free-of-charge, make money while you do so, and earn more than $140k/yr when its all finished. Stated wages don't include fringe wages - total package is $119.40/hr.
Full scale of wages as of June 1, 2022.
When I applied for the apprenticeship, I self-disclosed my felony convictions. When I did the interview, they said about my record, "Looks like you had a hiccup in 2005. You didn't need to put that here. Its been more than ten years." I knew I'd landed in the right place.
Another reason to join a trade union like @IBEW: having folks to work with that genuinely care for you and look out for you when times are tough.
Why this is important for folks with a criminal record:

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More from @hahnscratch

Matthew Hahn Profile picture
Apr 24
As a former drug addict, multi-felon, and high school dropout who nonetheless attended Berkeley, I’m here to tell you that your grades and test scores serve as baselines but not the actual measures for admittance.
As strange as this may sound to some folks, you have to be an exceptional student AND you have to be an interesting person (or at least make it seem so). How else are you going to stand out amongst the tens of thousands of equally qualified (academically) applicants?
My guess is that Kaitlyn Younger had fantastic grades, test scores, and examples of extracurriculars - but nothing that distinguished her specifically. Her personal essays were likely boring to the folks who are tasked with reading them. Boring, as in “just like the others”.
Read 5 tweets
Matthew Hahn Profile picture
Apr 23
Today, I have been sober 17 years.
I thought I was going to be serving a life sentence in prison. I got high and took myself to court. hahnscratch.com/2017/04/23/sur…
Some reflections on my journey from a couple years ago. dirtyhandscleandharma.com/imperfect-mirr… Image
Read 4 tweets
Matthew Hahn Profile picture
Dec 24, 2021
My union knows I’m out of work because of my recent heart surgery. I got this in the mail today, just to help out because they know I need it. Two thousand dollars. #UnionStrong #ibew
I didn’t ask for or apply for assistance. Our executive board literally voted to help me while I was still in the hospital. I’m truly grateful, particularly because some help is needed but I likely wouldn’t have asked for it.
I should point out that in addition to standard disability from the state, the union will also provide $1000/mo in additional disability, will freeze my healthcare premiums, and will freeze my union dues. They try to minimize as many expenses as possible while I’m out.
Read 7 tweets
Matthew Hahn Profile picture
Oct 21, 2021
Prisons are built on the labor of the incarcerated. The already-inflated budgets of correctional departments would be exponentially higher if the incarcerated population weren't relied upon to keep the prisons operating. Let's dispel some illusions and talk about prison labor...
Prisons are like small cities or nations. There are imports of raw goods, exports of manufactured products, and a labor force (incarcerated) that keeps the prison going. Food processing, trade work, trash collecting, administrative tasks, etc are all executed by prisoners.
Take the kitchen as an example. It may take as many as 20 people to prepare a meal for a prison or section of a prison. Of those 20 people, 18 are incarcerated, with one prison guard (in a custodial role) and one free staff (in an advisory role - managing the work).
Read 21 tweets
Matthew Hahn Profile picture
Sep 2, 2021
Yes, I was an incarcerated firefighter and, yes, I put myself in harm’s way. I did this, in part, because it was safer facing wildfires than sitting behind the walls. Yes, it is safer to fight a wildfire than to sit in a prison.
There are a number of other reasons to go to fire camp, ie earlier release, better food, humane visits, closer to nature, etc. I’m not trying to denigrate the heroism of our incarcerated firefighters - but please understanding that going to fire camp is the BEST of all options.
Many of us likely wouldn’t have chosen to save your homes in the mountains were it not for the fact that you’d keep us locked up in kennel-like war zones if we didn’t.
Read 14 tweets
Matthew Hahn Profile picture
Mar 20, 2021
These are called “dummy cages” or “coffins”. Many people who’ve been to prison have been placed in one, including myself. I was put in a dummy cage immediately after discovering that my cell mate was dead - while in the midst of a mild panic attack.
Needless to say, it didn’t help my situation. My dummy cage was plexiglass-lined and hard to breath in; claustrophobia just made me panic more. I ended up crumpling into the bottom of the cage in order to breath through the grating.
I lot of people are put in them for “misbehaving”. Sometimes they’re put into them as part of the transportation or movement process. Sometimes dummy cages are used to segregated “enemies”.
Read 7 tweets

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