The Maine Civil Liberties Union Foundation today praised an agreement with officials at the York County Jail, to protect inmates from unsafe work conditions.

The MCLU said today that it and the York County jail had signed off on the consent decree. The agreement was prompted by an incident in November 2006, when several inmates said they were forced to clean up a blood spill at the jail, without proper training or equipment. The MCLU represented the inmates and claimed the order to clean the blood was a violation of their constitutional rights.

“Without admitting any liability for past acts, the York County Jail agreed to provide safety equipment and training in the future, whenever inmates are put in a potentially dangerous work situation,” said the press release issued today by the MCLU.

“York County will be permanently enjoined from the use of inmates to clean up bloodspills without their consent and adequate training and protection,” the release said.

“Inmates give up their freedom when they go to jail, but they don’t have to give up their humanity,” said Zachary Heiden, legal director of the MCLU.