Federal Prison Industries

Federal Prison Industries, Inc.
UNICOR
Company typeState-owned enterprise
IndustryPenal labor
FoundedJune 23, 1934 (1934-06-23)
Headquarters,
U.S.
Key people
David D. Spears, Chairman
Donald R. Elliott, Vice Chairman
Revenue$531,453,000 (2019)
$61,166,000 (2019)
OwnerFederal Bureau of Prisons
Number of employees
10,896 (2016)
Websitewww.unicor.gov

Federal Prison Industries, Inc. (FPI), doing business as UNICOR (stylized as unicor) since 1977, is a corporation wholly owned by the United States government. It was created in 1934 as a prison labor program within the Federal Bureau of Prisons.

Under US federal law, all physically abled inmates who are not a security risk or have a health exception are required to work, either for UNICOR or at some other prison job. As of 2021, inmates earned between $0.23 to $1.15 per hour.

As a "mandatory source" for federal departments (having priority over all other sources, including JWOD sources from blind or severely disabled persons), FPI receives priority in any purchases of its products.

UNICOR is entirely self-sustaining and has no cost to US taxpayers.