Director's Update-Veteran Officers Getting Screwed

[Informer]

Take a look at this. This a Director's Update that was just released. It looks like they are going to give new officers bonuses for sticking around while veterans won't get any. Here it is from Justin Jones:

Continuous Service Incentive Plan for Correctional Security Officers

As most of you are aware, the Department is experiencing critical recruitment and re-tention difficulties in the Correctional Secu-rity Officer (CSO) job series. The turnover rate for CO positions has increased and in FY 2007 was at 32% for CSO I, 27% for CSO II and 15% for CSO III. Additionally over an eighteen month period from May 2006 thru October 2007, 71% of the offic-ers that left the agency were in their first 24 months of employment. This has led to correctional officers working additional shifts as well as days off. After considera-tion of options to improve the agency’s re-cruitment and retention of Correctional Se-curity Officers, The Department has autho-rized implementation of a Continuous Ser-vice Incentive (CSI) Plan for Correctional Security Officers, Levels I, II, and III.
Effective July 1, 2008, all eligible Correc-tional Security Officers will receive the CSI payment according to the payout schedule listed on the following page. Existing Cor-rectional Security Officers in Levels I10A, I10B, I10C, with less than two years of con-tinuous service will be eligible to begin re-ceiving the incentive upon completion of the next specified time interval payout. This plan does not allow for any prospec-tive, prorated, or retroactive payout to an eligible participant.
Examples: A Correctional Security Officer who is hired, or reinstated after a 30 day break in service, would receive in-centive payouts at 6 months, 12 months, 18 months, and at the end of the 24th month of continuous service, if he/she remains in the tar-geted job family/levels (I10A, I10B, I10C) while meeting the eligibility requirements described on the fol-lowing page. A Correctional Security Officer III promotes to a Correctional Security Officer IV or any other job fami-ly/level outside of those targeted af-ter 20 months of service. The em-ployee would receive incentive payouts after completing 6 months, 12 months, and 18 months of conti-nuous service. Since the employee promoted out of the targeted job family/levels to an I10D, he/she would no longer be eligible for the incentive plan and would not receive a CSI payment at 24 months.
Continuous Service Incentive Plan for Correctional Security Officers
ass
June 24, 2008
Eligible Participants: Current state em-ployees during their first two years of conti-nuous state employment in the targeted job families; and former state employees follow-ing a break in service of at least 30 days.
The table below outlines the schedule for payment of this plan.
Plan Payout:
Time of Payout
Amount of Payout
Upon completion of 6 months of continuous service
$1,250
Upon completion of 12 months of continuous service
$1,250
Upon completion of 18 months of continuous service
$1,250
At the end of the 24th month of continuous service
$1,250
TOTAL PAYOUT FOR 24 MONTHS OF CONTINUOUS SERVICE
$5,000
Payment will be made with regular payroll the month following the anniversary date. For example, employees who have 6, 12, 18, or 24 months of service in July, will receive a continuous service incentive payment on the regular payroll on August 31st.

[Crosstimbers Okie]

I saw that on the Oklahoma DOC site yesterday. Seems like the thing to do is for veteran officers to all take a 30 day unpaid vacation.

[Informer]

Why would you take a 30 day unpaid vacation? That would mean the veteran officers would bring in even less money.

[Lekrith]

Wow, this is a nice slap in the face.

Lets just forget about those officers who stayed with the department through these rough times.

But here, you new guys can have some extra money.

[Informer]

Oklahoma prison guards getting incentive pay

By Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY — In an effort to curb a high turnover rate, eligible state prison guards will get bonuses of $1,250 twice a year.

Justin Jones, director of the Department of Corrections, announced the bonus plan this week on the agency's Web site.

Jones said the agency is experiencing "critical and recruitment and retention difficulties" among correctional officers, who are charged with maintaining order in the state prison system.

The two-year bonus plan is an effort to keep new officers from leaving the agency. The turnover rate for first-level correctional officers was 32 percent in the 2007 fiscal year, dropping to 27 percent and 15 percent among officers in higher classifications.

Seventy-one percent of officers who left the department between May, 2006, and October, 2007, were in their first 24 months of employment.

Jones said the high turnover rate led to officers having to work extra shifts, as well as their scheduled days off.

"We're trying to do something to entice them to stay," said Jerry Massie, spokesman for the corrections agency. "Once they get past the 24-month period, the turnover rate drops considerably."

The first three levels of correctional officers will be eligible for the bonus plan, if they have less than two years continuous service. The plan takes effect July 1, the first day of the new fiscal year.

Under the plan, $1,250 "incentive" payments will be included in regular payroll checks at six-month intervals. If a new correctional officer remains on the job for two years, the bonuses would total $5,000.

The salary of a beginning correctional officer is less than $25,000 a year, which is considerably below the national average and the reason for the high turnover rate, officials say.

Like other state employees, prison workers did not get a pay raise from the Legislature this year.

[okljailer]

This screws the veteran officers who have put up with the low pay,understaffing and overcrowding for years. All the new officers have to do is stick around for two years,get their bonuses and then quit. If bonuses are given, give them to those who have worked for the doc for 5,10.15 years,etc.

[Xcrewchief]

Looks to me like the agency you work for can afford to pay the veteran officers a little bit more.

[Lekrith]

Yeah, Thats not gonna happen.