SAN DIEGO (FOX 5/KUSI) — Among the thousands of boots on the ground battling the wildfires in Los Angeles are hundreds of incarcerated individuals — a fact that has renewed attention on California's longstanding, but controversial inmate firefighter program. The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) confirmed to Nexstar's FOX 5/KUSI over 780 incarcerated people, including 88 support staff, are working "around the clock" in tandem with state and local fire crews to cut fire lines and clear fuels to slow the spread of the more than half-dozen wildfires burning in Los Angeles. The inmates were deployed to the front lines as part of a CDCR initiative known as the as the Conservation (Fire) Camp Program. Southern California Wildfires: What you need to know As the department explains, the program gives inmates who meet certain eligibility requirements the option to embed with first responders from Cal Fire and the Los Angeles County Fire Department during natural disasters, like wildfires and floods. When they are not out with Cal Fire crews, these inmates — all of whom must have minimum custody status and be considered physically and mentally fit — live at one of 35 low-security facilities called "conservation camps," or "fire camps." Contrary to some statements about the program circulating on social media, CDCR officials say the program is entirely voluntary, and those who join are eligible to earn credits to shave days off their sentences. Volunteers are also paid for their work anywhere from $5.80 to $10.24 per day, depending on their skill level. During emergencies, they are paid an extra $1 per hour, CDCR officials say. Once their sentence is up, inmates who participated as a volunteer firefighter are able to obtain employment with Cal Fire and the U.S. Forest Service through additional training programs offered by the state, even if a conviction might be a disqualifier for firefighting licensing. That is not to say the program, which has been shrinking in recent years due to California's efforts to reform the criminal justice system, is not without criticism. Some opponents to the program have denounced the program as dangerous and coercive, at times referring to it as a modern form of slavery as inmates still only receive pennies for their work like other forms of prison labor. How did the wildfires in Los Angeles start? On the flip side, the program has been praised as a creative way for states to save money while giving inmates a way to feel productive and learn career skills. Some who have participated in the program have described it as a better alternative to being in prison, despite still viewing it as abusive. As one formerly incarcerated Californian, Matthew Hahn, described in a 2021 Washington Post column, he "never met a fellow prisoner who didn't want to be in 'fire camp,'" as the "conditions in California prisons are so terrible that fighting wildfires is a rational choice." "It is understandable that fire camps are seen as dicey ethical terrain. Yes, the decision to take part is largely made under duress, given the alternative. Yes, incarcerated firefighters are paid pennies for an invaluable task. And yes, it is difficult though not impossible for participants to become firefighters after leaving prison," Hahn said. "Despite this, fire camps remain the most humane places to do time in the California prison system."