work-release

American  

[wurk-ri-lees] / ˈwɜrk rɪˌlis /

adjective

1. of or relating to a program under which prisoners may work outside of prison while serving their sentences.

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Etymology

Origin of work-release

First recorded in 1955–60

Example Sentences

Epstein was sentenced to 18 months in jail, mostly served on a work-release program that allowed him to leave jail daily.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 16, 2026

In 2008, he agreed to an exceedingly lenient plea deal with federal prosecutors that resulted in a 13-month prison sentence, with freedom granted 12 hours a day, six days a week, under a work-release program.

From Los Angeles Times • Jul. 20, 2025

Laws in some states spell it out clearly: Prisoners aren’t classified as employees, whether they’re working inside correctional facilities or for outside businesses through prison contracts or work-release programs.

From Seattle Times • May 16, 2024

That includes everything from making mattresses to solar panels, but does not account for work-release and other programs run through local jails, detention and immigration centers and even drug and alcohol rehabilitation facilities.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 29, 2024

The guy’s friends had called the police, who arrested the Iceman and ran a check on him, which revealed that the Iceman had walked from a work-release program eighteen months earlier.

From "American Gods" by Neil Gaiman