STILLWATER, Minn. - Correctional officers from Minnesota's prison system and their labor union warn that staffing shortages coupled with inmate program cuts add up to a disaster waiting to happen. AFSCME Council 5 is calling public attention to what its members deem dangerous staffing shortages inside correctional facilities in Stillwater, Oak Park Heights and Moose Lake.

Concerns over staffing stem from prison disturbances in the past year, including a violent fight on May 15 at Stillwater involving 70 prisoners, says Sgt. John Hillyard, president of AFSCME Local 600.

"I've worked here at Stillwater for 16 or 17 years, and I worked in corrections in other places before this; and I have never seen a disturbance of this level, especially here in the state of Minnesota."

Since 2003, the Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) experienced $68 million in cuts. During the same period, the Stillwater inmate population increased by at least 300.

The union is asking the state to allocate $1.8 million for 30 officers statewide, and to restore $3 million in inmate programming. DOC records indicate 15 correctional officers have been added to Stillwater since Fiscal Year 2004, but union representatives say the positions are in management and have no direct contact with prisoners.

Shari Burt, DOC communications director, disagrees with the union's assertion that the system is experiencing a staffing crisis. She says, despite historic budget deficits, not one correctional officer position has been cut.

"We have had some reductions to our budget, as have all government agencies, although we still have programming for work, education, sex offender treatment, chemical dependency treatment. So, we try to keep offenders productively occupied throughout most of the day, when they aren't locked in their cells."

Burt declined to comment further on staffing specifics, but cites an average of one full-time officer per 4.7 inmates in the state prison system, which she says is lower than the national average of 7.5 inmates per officer. The ratio is not per shift, she explains, but reflects the total number of officers – including trainees – across all shifts and stations.

Hillyard says programming cuts have been noticeable, and have resulted in more restlessness among inmates.

"We just don't warehouse inmates. We have to be able to give them something to do, whether it's with education, recreation programming, job training programming. If we don't have these things for them to do, then they find things to do, and usually it's not good things – they take it out on the officers and other staff."

Burt counters that the amount of idle time among inmates has remained steady in the past three years. She adds, however, that the agency does not have such data available for years prior to 2008.




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Today is National Postal Workers Day, a celebration of the job they do to deliver the mail.

Postal workers provide a vital service, especially during big election years like 2024 and in states like Oregon where elections are conducted completely by mail.

Daniel Cortez, Oregon legislative and political director for the American Postal Workers Union, noted the critical role his colleagues play.

"Whether it be America's election mail or letters from grandparents, care packages to our service members overseas, vital prescriptions for our seniors and veterans," Cortez outlined. "It's important to remember that all of that happens because of the dedication of the postal workers day in and day out."

The United States Postal Service was established by Benjamin Franklin on July 26, 1775.

The Postal Service is currently experiencing a shake-up. Trump-appointed Postmaster General Louis DeJoy is implementing his 10-year Delivering For America plan to modernize the Postal Service's network. It is meant job eliminations and sorting center cuts Cortez argued have hurt mail delivery. For instance, he pointed out sorting in Oregon has been consolidated to one center in Portland.

"It's imperative that the American people know that this slowdown is manufactured by the Postal Service," Cortez contended. "Everything from failure to properly staff offices to just deliberately slowing down how fast mail moves."

DeJoy has remained in office under President Joe Biden because only the Postal Board of Governors can oust him. Biden has delayed nominations for the board, delaying any potential change in leadership at the Postal Service.

With the July 4 holiday approaching, families are likely to spend time at municipal parks to celebrate and Parks Department staff in Minneapolis hope their labor dispute sheds light on the increasing demands in their line of work.

This week, Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board workers held an informational picket as they seek better pay and safer working conditions. They have also authorized a potential strike in the coming days.

Mitchell Clendenan, service area crew leader for the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation Board, said they feel their requests are being ignored, while at the same time, his colleagues are asked to do more with not enough support.

"In our heyday, we had upwards of 160 park keepers and that was probably in the 1980s," Clendenan noted. "Today, we only have 114 but the amount of land and parks that keep getting built keeps going up."

The union representing workers, Laborers' International Union of North America Local 363, compiled data it said underscored park keepers in Minneapolis are underpaid compared to surrounding communities. Organizers said there is a gap of more than $7 an hour. Officials on the management side have consistently stated they are bargaining in good faith.

As for other job challenges, Clendenan emphasized workers often start their days before the sun comes up, cleaning buildings and pools and disposing of needles and human waste.

"We have to deal with the unhoused," Clendenan observed. "It's just a lot of different pressures that society kind of, just; I don't think they understand the full extent of it."

He also pointed out one of their arborists was recently shocked by a power line, requiring a hospital visit. Other crew members say arborists have to earn prestigious certifications but struggle to cover living expenses based on their pay.

The demands come as Minneapolis consistently lands near the top of national rankings for best park systems in the country.

Depending on who you ask, the economy is on a solid path to improvement or is a drag on working families.

A Wisconsin educator said he is seeing positive economic trends and he credits federal policy.

John Havlicek has been teaching in La Crosse for a quarter-century and pointed out it once was a destination district. But he feels no public school system has the distinction anymore, as administrators scramble to attract teachers.

Havlicek, also a union leader, noted he has seen how the Biden administration's efforts on student loan forgiveness are having a positive impact on his colleagues. One way is through homeownership, which he acknowledged is out of reach for many in the field.

"That is not conducive to getting the best and the brightest into our classrooms," Havlicek argued. "The student loan forgiveness then is a huge deal because that two, three, four, five hundred dollars a month would be freed up for folks to spend elsewhere on something like a house."

He wants policymakers to get even more creative, suggesting a federal match to get states to boost education spending. Havlicek pointed out new federal investments in infrastructure and clean energy have helped local universities and hospitals expand. Critics of the moves said they helped fuel recent bouts of inflation.

Havlicek emphasized jobs tied to public works projects in his area are strengthening public unions, after Wisconsin Republicans have tried to weaken them in recent decades. It includes the repeal of state prevailing-wage laws. He stressed workers now are benefiting from labor standards and training included in policies like the Inflation Reduction Act.

"These are high-paying jobs and when we couple that with the (local) technical college, these folks can get their training, and they can raise families, they, you know, buy their groceries, they go out for dinner," Havlicek outlined.

Immigration is a thorny topic on the campaign trail but Havlicek underscored it is important to have new career pathways as La Crosse's population becomes more diverse. La Crosse has seen a nearly 70% increase in Latino residents since 2010.


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