The way back to life
Graz-Karlau Prison

With a capacity of more than 500 prisoners, Graz-Karlau Prison is the third largest correctional facility in Austria. However, it sees its task not only as depriving inmates of their liberty, but also as resocializing them into society in order to reduce the likelihood of recidivism and thus ensure improved victim protection. For this reason, Graz-Karlau Prison has been offering nine apprenticeship programs for inmates in the spirit of resocialization for more than 70 years - including training in installation and building technology. HERZ also supports the training and further education here with the HERZ pellet boiler pelletstar for training purposes.

From Imperial Hunting Lodge to Prison

The former hunting lodge of Archduke Charles II of Inner Austria (1540-1590) has served as a penitentiary for more than 200 years. In the 16th century, Archduke Charles II, the third son of the Roman-German King and later Emperor Ferdinand_I (1503-1564), took the decision to build a castle at the Au area near the Mura River, surrounded by a zoo and the imperial hunting grounds. Of course, the castle was named after Archduke Charles II as well as the area: Castle Charles-Au. The construction of the palace was hardly completed when Archduke Karl_II died of a bacterial infectious disease in 1590. His widow Archduchess Maria further developed the property and Karlau Castle became the preferred widow's residence.

Over the years, the castle fell into other hands. In 1749, Empress Maria Theresa (1717-1780) designated the castle as a "workhouse". Vagrants as well as unemployed people were accustomed to "order" here and also trained. During the Seven Years' War from 1756-1763, the castle served as a prisoner-of-war house for the first time, until it was used as a workhouse again in 1769. Towards the end of the 18th century, the former castle served as barracks, until finally in 1803, after a reform of the penal law, it was designated as a provincial penal house for prisoners with a sentence of up to 10 years' imprisonment.

Today, the Graz-Karlau Prison houses exclusively male prisoners sentenced to between three years and life imprisonment on an area of just under 70,000 m².

The resocialization for the long-term security of society

In 1950, the then Department Inspector Heinrich Fauland took the initiative to establish a vocational school for the resocialization of juvenile inmates. Starting with the professions of men's dressmaker, shoemaker and carpenter, Graz-Karlau Prison currently offers apprenticeships in 9 professions: Electrical Technician, Installation and Building Technician, Cook, Automotive Technician, Painter and Coating Technician, Structural Engineering (formerly Bricklayer), Metal Technician, Shoemaker and Carpenter. Many inmates at Graz-Karlau Prison are repeat offenders. Inmates who complete an apprenticeship have a much lower probability of recidivism compared to others.

Major Guido Riepl has been working at Graz-Karlau Prison for 26 years and explains to us in an exclusive interview how training while in prison affects inmates and their future.

HERZ News: What does the daily routine of a prisoner look like?

Guido Riepl: From 15:00 - 07:00 they are in the detention room. The rest of the time they are busy in the in-house facilities and also have free time. From soccer to cooking groups or literature workshops, we offer many things to choose from here.

We currently have 22 businesses set up and have a large clientele. We look at which inmates are currently serving their sentences, what they can do, where they have experience so that we can decide which jobs we can take on now. Some inmates are on release directly with the client and work there. However, some jobs are also done here on site such as: Packaging and sorting work. For example, we have a carpentry shop and make furniture for us and other prisons, as well as a car repair shop.

HERZ News: What considerations are made when deciding which apprenticeships are offered at Graz-Karlau Prison?

Guido Riepl: We look at what is needed in the labour market. All trained professions with us are in demand and skilled trades that are on the shortage list of the Chamber of Commerce. We currently have a total of 22 businesses at Karlau and try to find suitable inmates for each profession. In each company there is a colleague who is responsible for the apprenticeship training and decides together with the respective vocational school teacher whether the inmate gets the apprenticeship contract after the trial apprenticeship or not. They then receive the final certificate by WIFI.

HERZ News: How does the training affect the inmates?

Guido Riepl: Our experience is that they have a better chance of integrating into society than if they do not complete a trade. Inmates who already work in external companies during their imprisonment usually stay with the company after their release.

They are treated humanely here, learn to take responsibility, be reliable and adapt to the daily structure. The rules are strictly adhered to, otherwise the job is gone. So there is also a human aspect and treatment behind it. We had one inmate who studied so intensively for the apprenticeship exam because he saw the vocational school teacher as his second father and didn't want to disappoint him.

HERZ News: So appreciation and a sense of accomplishment play a pretty big role for inmates?

Guido Riepl: Most of them have not received any appreciation in their lives, they have sometimes already attracted negative attention at school or were the last link in society. They have often felt that they are not wanted. We fulfill the legal mandate here in terms of deprivation of liberty, but we are not there to punish them further. Indeed, our task is also to prepare them for life afterwards.

HERZ News: So, through human interaction and education, as well as preparation for life afterwards, it also contributes to the protection of society?

Guido Riepl: Of course. If we just lock people up and do nothing with them, how can they be released back into society? The next offense is then preprogrammed. Our job is to make them fit for society. When someone serves a sentence of 10-15 years, a lot of things happen out there. It is also psychologically a different attitude to be free again after a long time. No one wants to get their neighbor or family member back depressed or full of anger. We try to exhaust everything in our power and what the law allows us to do.

HERZ News: Thank you for the interesting conversation and information that is not known to the majority.

The challenges for teachers

Teaching in prison is not as easy as in schools. "Here, the world is a different one," says Ing. Winkelbauer, who has been teaching the Building and Installation Technology apprenticeship program at Karlau for years. Surrounded by 360° cameras in a room with 3-4 inmates is not for the faint of heart. The challenge, however, lies in the limited opportunities. Teaching excursions and field trips, as well as the Internet, are taboo in the prison. Therefore, he brings lab experiments filmed in schools on a USB stick and projects them via the projector. "Craftsmanship is a matter of practice. You can only learn the craft by practicing, especially steel welding - and the more often the better," emphasizes Ing. Winkelbauer. He is aware of the great shortage of skilled workers in the skilled trades.

The art and difficulty of teaching in prison also lies in motivating the inmates and making them aware of their potential. Ing. Winkelbauer's motivation is clear: to make a personal contribution to the inmates' resocialization.

HERZ pellet boiler pelletstar in Graz-Karlau

Many inmates are also interested in the apprenticeship building and installation technology. Therefore, HERZ has provided the new pellet boiler pelletstar to the prison for training purposes. The boiler has automatic ignition and heating operation and ensures energy-efficient combustion through lambda probe control. For safety reasons, the pellet boiler is not put into operation for heating purposes at Graz-Karlau Prison, but is used for assembling and adjusting the control system.

The Graz-Karlau Prison and also Ing. Winkelbauer are particularly pleased about the use of the HERZ pellet boiler: "Our HERZ pellet boiler is a very valuable contribution to training. I had hoped and suspected that Dr. Glinzerer would fulfill this wish, as he has a big heart for professions and especially for the plumber profession. The inmates are being trained for the future and renewable energy is the future. We can now rebuild plants as they should be today and look ahead," says Ing. Winkelbauer.

The industry is desperate for skilled workers and Graz-Karlau Prison is making a valuable contribution to alleviating this skills shortage. With the use of a HERZ pellet boiler, HERZ contributes to this solution and also supports those who wish for a new start and a better life after release.

HERZ News would like to thank you for the opportunity to pay an unusual visit to the Graz-Karlau Prison and to gain an insight into the world of prisoners.