12-Hour Shifts and the Right to Choose
Correctional Officers and front-line supervisors should be given the opportunity to choose what shift they will work ... it should be their choice to work 12-hour shifts or 8-hour shifts.
Because Correctional Officers have families and personal situations, 12 hours should not be mandatory for anyone. Some people have medical conditions that prohibit them from being able to work 12-hour shifts in a prison setting; some people have children who need to be picked up from school and tended to; some people are in school to improve themselves and their career options.
If the Department of Corrections wants to retain good officers, they need to make sure that the DOC is a place where we can have a good career.
We haven’t had a raise in years. We are in a “crisis situation” budget-wise, but the Administration should at least attempt to work more with COs regarding scheduling and other working conditions. There should not be any recrimination for those who have different opinions about the way our prisons are being run or the way the COs are treated.
Currently there are some COs at Telfair State Prison who chose to be on the 12-hour shift and have found that it is not working for them. They should be allowed to switch back at their earliest convenience. The Administration needs to show some courtesy and respect for us and the work we do. They need to show us they have a bond with us and a commitment to us and our careers.
When it comes to furloughs, we need to see more time taken from those who make the big bucks. The Governor, the Commissioner and all those who are making much more than the average CS salary should be the ones taking a day off, not us.
We get paid a pittance as it is. This is true for all employees of the state who give their time in the name of serving the public but get less and less back for our efforts.