Rob Sand — the Democrat who’s running for governor — says it makes sense to classify staff in Iowa’s prison system as public safety employees, which would give them the right to raise more issues when they’re negotiating contracts. Republican lawmakers changed Iowa’s collective bargaining law in 2017, setting base pay as the only subject allowed to be negotiated by public sector unions.
Sand said. However, public safety employees were exempted from that limitation. It means state troopers, for example, may still negotiate on topics like overtime pay, health insurance and safety issues.
Sand made his comments Tuesday during a forum organized by AFSCME (AFFS-mee) Council 61, the union that represents prison staff and other employees who work in state and local government in Iowa. Neal Lamaster (luh-MASTER), a registered nurse at the Iowa State Penitentiary in Fort Madison, says the prison is so understaffed a colleague recently worked 180 hours in a two-week period — 100 of those hours were overtime.
Lamaster said. Lamaster, who’s been an prison system employee for 29 years, intends to stay because he’s nearing the point of earning full retirement benefits, but Lamaster told Sand pay is not high enough to retain staff and attract new employees.
Lamaster says even some of the inmates tell him more staff is needed to reduce the threat of being assaulted by another inmate. Todd Eaves (rhymes with “LEAVES”) has been a correctional worker at the Iowa State Penitentiary since 1997.
There was an 11-hour-long riot at the Iowa State Penitentiary in 1981. Inmates took hostages and after negotiations ended the standoff, one inmate was found stabbed to death. During yesterday’s (Tuesday’s) forum with Sand, seven other prison employees raised concerns about high staff turnover and a lack of mental health treatment for juvenile offenders. A few told Sand a new Iowa law requiring mandatory 20 year prison sentences after a third felony or violent misdemeanor conviction will likely force the state to build a new prison.
