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| Prison Accreditation Costs Irk Indiana Officers |
| By Indianapolis Star |
| Published: 09/09/2002 |
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The union representing officers at Indiana prisons thinks the Department of Correction is spending too much money on showing that it meets standards set by a national organization. Their complaint concerns the estimated $500,000 that it would cost every three years to have all 34 of Indiana's prisons meet standards set by the Maryland-based American Correctional Association. The correction officers believe some of that money should go toward raises. Like all state employees, they haven't gotten a raise since January 2001. 'We're mad,' said Bruce Hylman, a correction officer at the Plainfield Correctional Facility. 'This is the fifth time in the 12 years that I've been there that they've told us to tighten our belts and live with it.' Department of Correction officials say meeting the standards would save the state money in the long run by cutting insurance costs and reducing payouts on lawsuits. 'It will show what our strengths and weaknesses are, and it will help staff professionalism and morale,' said department spokeswoman Pam Pattison. 'It establishes specific guidelines for the operation of the facilities.' The dispute comes as Indiana and more than 40 other states are facing the worst fiscal crisis in at least a decade. Along with freezing state workers' pay, Indiana officials decided not to fill hundreds of vacant jobs and asked workers to take time off without pay. The state faces a deficit of at least $400 million a year in a two-year budget of about $20.7 billion. That fiscal crunch has many states, including Indiana, closing prison facilities. At the same time, prisons are struggling to hire enough officers and keep them on the job. Officers believe the key to hiring and keeping enough of them is to offer better pay. The starting salary for a correction officer is $21,814. |
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