Fayette jail sees staffing turnaround after wage increase
A recent pay increase for correctional officers has led to an influx of applicants and new hires at the Fayette County jail, officials said.
The raises came after Chase Rutherford, president of the United Mine Workers of American Local 91, which represents correctional officers, voiced his concerns about understaffing during a December county jail board meeting.
“We are currently, I believe, somewhere around 19 officers short… I’m not going to sit here and say something has to be done, but I’m requesting help,” Rutherford said at the time.
In January, the commissioners unanimously agreed to include a $4-an-hour bump for current employees and offered an hourly wage of $22 for new full-time hires, up from $18.45 in January.
The pay bump appears to have, initially, paid off. As of last week the jail board approved the hiring of a dozen new full- and part-time correction officers.
“It’s definitely working,” Rutherford said. “Since the beginning of the year they were able to hire 12 officers, and there are at least 16 more applicants they need to interview.”
Commissioner Scott Dunn said not only does the raise help with hiring and retention, but also provides a competitive advantage over state and federal prisons, which have been known to “poach” officers from local jails.
Dunn also said the raises are an investment in the county’s workforce.
“There’s a cost to outfitting and training new employees all the time versus retaining your current employees,” he said.
Warden John Lenkey noted that recent hiring has positively impacted morale among staff. Many employees, including a female correction officer who worked 53 hours of mandatory overtime in December, had to endure long hours, but the new hires have alleviated some of that strain.
“It’s been a stressful time, but the officers have done really well,” Lenkey said.
Lenkey said the jail is not yet fully staffed, but is optimistic that will happen.
“We’re not there yet on personnel yet, but all these applicants have given me a reason to smile, finally,” Lenkey said.
Rutherford said he believes the jail will be fully staffed by the end of the year.