By C1 Staff
SPRINGFIELD — Despite planning to close two prisons, Department of Corrections’ figures show that 135 correctional officers were hired in early November.
The number of corrections officers is still down by 30 compared to last year, and the new hires will replace some of the 206 employees who have left during the current fiscal year, according to the Pantagraph.
More than 343 corrections officers departed since the same time last year.
Gov. Pat Quinn is currently pushing to close two prisons, the super-maximum-security in Tamms and the all-female facility at Dwight, claiming that the move could save the state about $62 million annually.
The pace of hiring will not outpace the rate of attrition, according to Abdon Pallasch, spokesman for the governor’s office, which will provide the savings.
Because of the drop in the total number of corrections officers, each current and new officer oversees about an average of 7.4 inmates.
“This hiring won’t even keep pace with attrition. There’s much more to be done to address drastic overcrowding and staff shortages, starting with a halt to the governor’s closures and layoffs,” Anders Lindall said, spokesman for the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
The AFSCME, which is fighting the closures in court, says the staffing levels, combined with overcrowding, “are making the entire correctional system volatile and unsafe for employees, inmates and the public.”