Union protests overtime for inmate picnic

Published 11:41 am Friday, June 22, 2012

A program to help prisoners stay connected with their families has raised union officials concern about its costs during the states budget crunch.

Two Rivers Correctional Institution, Umatilla, scheduled picnics Saturday and Sunday for 144 medium-security inmates and their families. Prison spokeswoman Vicki Reynolds said the picnics provide a more relaxed surrounding for inmates to get to know family rather than across tables or through glass in the typical guarded visiting room.

Its a way for us to help them develop family relationships so when they release they will have a support structure, Reynolds said.

Correctional Officer Scott Campbell, president of the Oregon American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local 974, the union representing workers at TRCI, called the picnics an unnecessary expense. The staff working them will be earning overtime, Campbell said.

Staff are thinking we dont have the overtime funding for all of this, Campbell said. Where is the funding coming from?

The East Oregonian obtained a copy of an email TRCI Capt. Jason Jorgensen sent June 13 seeking up to 20 staff to work an overtime shift to cover what he called these ground breaking events. Prison higher-ups also extended the offer to security staff at Eastern Oregon Correctional Institution in Pendleton, in case too few TRCI volunteers signed on.

Campbell said calling for overtime doesnt make sense when at least one staff member is losing a job and the Department of Corrections is leaving positions vacant due to budget constraints. Prison officials haven’t given an estimate of how much all the overtime will cost, but Campbell roughly figured that cost at $275 per employee for each 8-hour overtime shift.

The prison held a similar picnic last week for nine inmates and their 38 guests in the administrative housing unit, which holds 51 inmates total. The unit houses inmates who are vulnerable or pose a security risk and cannot be in the general population for their own safety, Reynolds said. Six security staff worked an overtime shift to cover that picnic.

The prison expects 73 inmates and 350 visitors for Saturdays picnic, Reynolds reported, and 71 inmates and 380 visiters Sunday. She said the numbers are approximate.

Reynolds said the idea for the picnics grew out of the Oregon Accountability Model, the system the department uses to help inmates build the skills they need to lead successful lives after prison. The prisons executive team tested the picnic function last year with its minimum security inmates.

It went really well and got a lot of feedback and everyone really enjoyed it, Reynolds said.

Other state prisons have had these family events, she said, which, in addition to building relationship, also provide incentive for inmates to behave.

From our position, if the inmates are happy, it helps the staff because they dont act out, are more inclined to stick with programming and do what they need to do, she said. It helps staff that way because they dont have to deal with so much conflict.

Correctional Officer Michael Seefeldt, the Local 974 vice president, in email Wednesday to the locals board of directors, called for formal opposition to the overtime hiring plan. I view this as fiscally irresponsible, when the administration is planning hiring overtime to be able to have a picnic for convicted felons while we are cutting back on everything else, including our most valuable asset staff and staff safety, he said in the email. We are forced into compromising staff safety and facility safety.

He and Campbell suggested the prison go into a lockdown to keep inmates in cells and free up on-duty staff to cover the picnics, rather than bring on a cadre of officers on overtime. This would reduce overtime needs, and we could operate within budget, Campbell said.

Contact Phil Wright at pwright@eastoregonian.com or 541-966-0833.