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I got to a whole variety of different client site, from the government to schools to hospitals to banks to huge companies. I was at a state government office once, and I had a badge that let me walk around the building without an escort. This really helped when I needed to leave for lunch or walk to the vending room.
During one of my first visits, I passed by an area that had a window that looked at the courtyard outside. I saw several people standing outside talking and milling around. This wouldn't have been weird if the two men hadn't been wearing the exact same thing - white t-shirts and green and white striped pants, almost looking like pajama pants. The other two were policemen, but since the building also house the police offices, that wasn't anything out of the ordinary. I walked by.
Later on in the day, I was in the bathroom, and there was a woman in there cleaning the bathroom. She said a pleasant "Hello" and I said hi back. I then noticed that she had the same striped pants and white shirt as the two men outside.
"Aha! That's what the maintenance people wear!" I thought to myself. Pretty ugly outfits for maintenance people. They stick out like a sore thumb!
I was then talking to a coworker later on the week who was also working at the site. He mentioned to me, "Isn't it weird that the convicts are just walking around?"
"Huh?"
"You know, they're free to walk around the building when they're doing their maintenance chores. They're the ones in the green striped pants. How could you not notice them?"
"Oh. Yeah. Those guys. Um, yeah, that's kinda weird." I replied.
Ahh...the lightbulb goes on. The people who were wearing those strange uniforms were convicts! Turns out it was a work program for the convicts - if they had good behavior and worked hard, they were allowed to go outside the prison and work in the state offices. Of course, the state offices had security and everything around it, so there really is no danger.
So I admit to being a bit weirded out when I'd see the green stripes (as I called them in my head), but they always polite and friendly, so there was really nothing to be worried about.
I wonder if all the states do something like this...
Posted by Yano at August 25, 2005 10:34 AMThe facility I am working at in Jersey does that. I work there through an agency,, I am a contract worker. The facility is state run and in order to clean and maintain the grounds of the facility they use convicts. They are very obvious though,, bright orange jumpsuits, ya can't miss them. They are not allowed to talk to anyone during the duties, if they do they can jeopardize their "good behavior" status.
Posted by: Tara on August 25, 2005 03:46 PMIn Alabama they put 'em out on highway maintenance making the South beautiful. Sorta like a "pay your way" system.
Posted by: SusanG on August 25, 2005 06:27 PMOH, and the guards used to have shot guns. Don't know if that's still the case, but yeah, they too had bright orange jumpsuits.
Posted by: SusanG on August 25, 2005 06:28 PMI'm back in Texas now and haven't seen it here, but Georgia did it all the time.
very common.
it was never dangerous.
there are always guards and only those that are well behaved are allowed.
They had convicts working on road repair crews when I was in grad school in North Carolina. You couldn't miss them them; their reflective vests had CONVICT emblazoned across the fronts and backs. Lol!
One day they were paving the road right where I was waiting at a bus stop. One of them was giving me the creeps because he kept stopping and glancing at me and my chest.
I was like 'why is a convict staring at my chest?' I kept trying to look at everything else besides him.
Finally, when he gave up on making eye contact with me, he called out 'There is a bee crawling up your shirt!' I was pretty glad he told me!
Posted by: noelle on August 26, 2005 09:39 PM
