Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Corrections Compensation And Overtime topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Correctional officers press for $8 hourly bump, retention pay and overtime fixes
Summary
The Police Benevolence Association Security Services unit told the committee that correctional officers start at $22/hour and recommended an $8/hour increase, retention steps, a 10% additive for high‑stress units and clearer overtime pay for lieutenants and captains now capped at comp time.
James Biardi, representing correctional officers, told the committee the primary outstanding issue in bargaining is wages. He said starting pay for correctional officers is $22 per hour and asked the committee to support an $8 hourly increase to improve recruitment and retention.
Biardi asked for targeted retention payments — $2,000 for employees with 3–9 years of service and $3,500 for those with 10 or more years — and a 10% pay additive for personnel in death‑row and close‑management units. He described staffing shortfalls that force officers to work long hours and said lieutenants and captains receive comp time capped at 240 hours; when they are at cap they do not receive overtime pay for additional hours worked, a condition Biardi said should be remedied by paying time‑and‑a‑half like other officers.
Matimore earlier told the committee the state has proposed a 2% competitive increase and a $28/hour minimum for the security services unit effective July 1, 2026, plus hiring bonuses. The committee did not vote; bargaining remains ongoing.
