State prison officials considering layoffs
Wardens send ideas for cuts
Posted: 09/01/2010 05:23:00 PM PDT
California prison officials are reviewing recommended staff eliminations sent to them last week by prison wardens.
State Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation officials in August asked for a 3 percent employee reduction - about 1,100 positions - to save between $80 million and $100 million.
An analysis of the potential cuts is expected to be completed in about 30 days, state prison officials said.
Details on recommended cuts at California Institution for Men and California Institution for Women, both in Chino, as well as California Rehabilitation Center in Norco were not released by prison officials.
State prison officials will have to approve the cuts, following labor negotiations.
"The department is in the early stages of analyzing and evaluating the potential impact to operations as well as consistency between institutions," CDCR spokeswoman Peggy Bengs said.
"No actions will be taken prior to a thorough analysis. Should CDCR move forward with reductions, appropriate measures will occur internally and externally, including labor discussions."
The state request for cuts was outlined in a memo sent to state prison wardens earlier last month by George Giurbino, director of adult institutions for CDCR.
Giurbino asked the wardens to identify custody as well as non-custody positions for potential elimination.
Education and health care positions will not be eliminated.
Union officials have expressed concern about employee safety and staffing levels if the cuts are approved. CDCR officials said the savings are necessary during a challenging economy.
"There are plenty of other places in the department where they could cut people that don't have day to day supervision of inmates and that wouldn't put the staff, the inmates, or the public in jeopardy," said Joe Baumann, chapter president of the California Correctional Peace Officers Association at CRC.
"You would think that someone in the Legislature or the governor's office would frown on cutting safety positions in light of all the recent riots and incidents across the state ... these cuts are just going to exacerbate those problems."
CDCR have not finalized a date for when labor negotiations would begin.
"When you start cutting staff, you start eliminating the ability to do all the functions throughout the day and continue to keep the number of alarm responders at a sufficient level for emergencies," said Fred Stevens, California Correctional Peace Officers Association president at CIM.
"They're asking us to do more with less and that's a difficult thing to do when what you're in charge of is security."
A riot at CIM in August 2009 injured more than 200 inmates and gutted one of the prison's reception centers.
"I understand that this assessment process may create some concern in our facilities and want to assure you no decisions and/or actions are being taken at this time," Giurbino wrote to the wardens.
"However, please understand we are facing an unprecedented fiscal crisis, and resolution will require all of us working together in meeting this challenge."
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