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H.R. 8002119th CongressIn committeeLatest action Mar 19, 2026Decoded by AI · checked against the record
Official title: Fair Wages for Incarcerated Workers Act of 2026
Introduced:
Read the official bill on Congress.govThe plain-language version leads. The official text is always the reference.
HR 8002 would require prisons and jails to pay incarcerated workers at least the federal minimum wage under the same law that covers other U.S. workers.
45-second read · 4 questions answered below
This bill would extend Fair Labor Standards Act protections to people who work while incarcerated, requiring they be paid at least the federal minimum wage. Facilities would not be allowed to count housing or meals as wages, and could not use certain court-imposed fee deductions to reduce a worker's counted earnings.
The bill would affect the roughly 800,000 to 1 million incarcerated people in the United States who currently perform work through prison programs. It would also apply to federal and state correctional agencies and private prison companies that run work programs.
Right now, incarcerated workers are excluded from federal wage law, so facilities can legally pay them very little, sometimes just cents per hour. This bill would change that by making the same federal minimum wage rules apply to this group of workers.
AI-drafted summary. Verify it against the official text before you act on it. Read the official bill on Congress.gov
Right now: a House committee is reviewing it. If the Senate changes it, it goes back to the House before reaching the President.
Latest action: — Referred to the House Committee on Education and Workforce.