MUSKEGON, Mich. — Dozens of corrections officers and their families picketed outside Muskegon's two prisons on Friday, in protest of low staffing levels.
The Michigan Corrections Organization, a 6,000 person union representing correction officers, says staffing levels are "dangerously low" creating unsustainable working conditions for its members. A problem that the union says has carried on for years and is only exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We want people to know that the conditions in here right now are not sustainable. They're not safe, and we're asking for support," said union president Byron Osborn.
The Michigan Department of Corrections currently has 734 vacancies, which is one of the reasons that the union says it submitted a vote of no confidence in MDOC Director Heidi Washington this week to both the governor's office and the legislature.
In a letter to the director, Osborn cited things like unsafe staffing levels, a lack of transparency in policy decisions and a failure to properly respond to the pandemic as reasons for requesting her removal.
The Friday picket, Osborn said, is the first of many. Muskegon Correctional Facility and Earnest C. Brooks Facility were chosen as a starting point due to the severity of the staffing situation at those facilities, officers said.
Muskegon Correctional Facility is also currently the source of the prison system's largest COVID-19 outbreak, with over 60% of inmates there testing positive for the virus within the last month. One inmate has died. Twenty-three staff members have tested positive for the virus.
Alfred Carrillo has worked at the Muskegon Correctional Facility for over a decade. He said the overtime mandates to fill in staffing gaps have put a strain on his family.
"You don't have a choice, whatever your plans were at the end of the day, they are gone," he said while picketing alongside his daughter and grandson. "You just never know everyday when you walk in how long you're going to be there. It's hard."
Several officers said they often work at least 16 hours and up to 26 hours in a shift.
According to Gautz, the standard is that no one should work more than 16 hours, and that a 24-hour shift is a rare occurrence that typically happens when a transportation officer drives a prisoner down from the Upper Peninsula for medical care.
Gautz, who said the department agrees that more officers are needed, also attributed overtime mandates to officers not following COVID-19 protocols and having to be sent home as a close contact to a positive case.
"We also need the officers we have now to follow the rules and the governor’s executive order and wear their mask at all times. Failure to follow these rules can be just as big a driver of mandated overtime as the vacancies," Gautz said in an email Friday.
When officers are sent home to quarantine, they are required to use sick or vacation time in order to receive pay, which is another issue Osborn said the union has with Washington's policies.
Osborn said he believes the department's lack of staff dedicated to recruitment efforts coupled with the department's inability to retain staff is to blame for the high vacancies.
Gautz said the department's hiring plan will allow for the hiring of 950 new officers between now and next fall.
In response to the union's letter requesting her removal, Washington, who has been the director since July 2015, said the department is committed to protecting the health and safety of all those under its supervision.
"I stand by the important work this department has done throughout the pandemic to keep people safe, and we will keep working to ensure that our inmates and staff are protected during these challenging times," she wrote.
A spokesperson for the governor's office said that Gov. Gretchen Whitmer supports both Director Washington and the MCO members and their families.
“The administration will continue working with MDOC and MCO leadership to ensure the safety of everyone in Michigan’s prison system as we manage through the COVID-19 pandemic," read the statement from communications director Zack Pohl.
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