NCJ Number
96858
Journal
National Sheriff Volume: 37 Issue: 1 Dated: (February-March 1985) Pages: 28,30-32,35-36
Date Published
1985
Length
6 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the problems of and solutions to low salaries, poor training, and lack of recognition of most jail officers in the United States.
Abstract
To resolve pay and training problems requires a fundamental change in how governing bodies and the general public view the job of jail officer. In the National Sherrifs Association (NSA) 1982 survey, sheriffs and jail administrators identified personnel as the number one problem confronting American jails. No one wants to work for near poverty wages in a physically undesirable setting and at the same time be expected to assume major responsibilities. Journalists and newscasters frequently humiliate jail officers by labeling them as 'guards.' A similar attitude among misinformed county administrators may lead to lawsuits, which result in part from the unwillingness to hire and retain the best people available for jail positions. Seventy percent of the 1,688 departments responding to the 1982 survey paid patrol officers more than jail officers; 27 percent achieved pay parity between the 2 jobs; and 2 percent paid jail officers more than patrol officers. The results of an NSA telephone survey to determine the nature of jail training available are presented on a State by State basis. Only in Florida is corrections training equal at both the local and State levels as well as on a par with law enforcement training. Training parity requires action in State legislatures, but this will not happen without pressure brought by local jurisdictions, State sheriffs' associations, and the electorate.