Consultants urge Hennepin County to raise jail line staffing, adopt relief-factor model and deploy a flex pool

Consultants from Matrix Consulting told Hennepin County’s Law, Safety & Justice Committee on June 23 that the adult detention division needs more line deputies, a mandatory “relief factor” in staffing calculations and operational changes to curb high overtime levels.

Greg Matthews, the Matrix lead, summarized the firm’s follow-up to last year’s overtime study and said Minnesota Department of Corrections minimums and facility types (a 330-bed direct/indirect observation facility and a 503‑bed linear facility) shape staffing needs. He described the relief factor as the multiplier that converts a 24/7 post into full‑time equivalents; using recent county data, the relief factor was 1.22.

Matthews said the county’s line deputy fixed-post need without a relief factor is about 252 positions; applying the relief factor raises that need to about 303. Matrix’s “optimum staffing plan” ranged up to roughly 318 line positions, with additional clerical staff added to central records. The report recommended a four‑year phasing plan to move staffing toward those levels and said bringing line staffing closer to the relief‑factor target should reduce overtime.

The presentation also recommended operational changes including a flex pool — a pool of staff assigned flexibly across duties instead of relying on ad‑hoc overtime — and flagged “jail supplemental staffing” demands such as hospital guard duty, which the consultant said averaged the equivalent of about 20 fixed posts if made permanent.

Commissioners pressed for specifics. A staff member said the current count for jail positions was 381 overall and that fully implementing Matrix’s recommendations (including supervisory and records additions) would bring the total to about 451. Matthews and county staff said the relief factor is not currently mandated by the county budget process and that the consultant’s recommendation is to embed it going forward and phase in hiring accordingly. Administration noted about 30 detention deputies were being onboarded later this summer, which staff expected to move current staffing toward interim targets.

Committee members also asked for regular follow‑up. Matthews recommended a short formal report from the Sheriff in 6–12 months listing which Matrix recommendations were implemented, partially implemented or declined. The Sheriff spoke later in the meeting to acknowledge hiring successes and to warn that recent changes in paid‑leave rules and other leave categories have created daily variability in available staff.