Correctional officers, also known as prison officers, are people involved in the supervision, regulation, custody, and safety of inmates in the criminal justice systems. They play a crucial role in the control, care, and custody of individuals imprisoned in the justice system. They also ensure the facilities' safety and security where the prisoners are held and function according to federal or state jurisdictions. In the US, there are more than 122 federal prisons and an additional 1833 state prisons (Lambert et al., 2018). The two forms of prisons provide employment to correctional officers, who perform both management and implementation roles. There are more than 454500 correctional officers across the federal and state prisons in the US (Lambert et al., 2018). The officers are trained to handle various scenarios, including self-defense, defusing hostility, criminal law, correctional law, giving testimonies in courts, and hostage negotiations. Despite having such high levels of training, correctional officers encounter various issues which make their roles and responsibilities difficult to handle. With inmate to correctional officers' ratio of 5 to 1, the correctional officers are burdened by the number of prisoners they must manage (Joe, 2015). Consequently, issues like mental issues and fatigue arise among correctional officers. They also face increased risks like killing by criminals within the prisons (Lambert et al. 2018). However, correctional officers also benefit from effective training, good welfare associations, medical insurance, and retirement plans despite the various challenges and risks. Connectedly, this paper discusses the various risks, challenges, and rewards involved in the roles of correctional professionals.
Correctional professionals face both institutional and systemic work-related risks. Institutional-related dangers arise from poor leadership, decision-making, ambiguity, conflicts, employee benefits, and inadequacy of resources. In essence, most correctional officers in the country are faced with the challenge arising from a lack of adequate resources to support their functions. For instance, in the monitoring case, correctional officers face higher risks of fatigue due to the demands of their jobs (Joe, 2015). They have to ensure the prisoners' full supervision to avoid them from indulging in criminal acts, including violence and breaking out of the cells. Such roles could easily be handled through the use of advanced technology and the construction of better facilities. However, the limited budgetary allocations to the criminal justice system imply that correctional officers must perform more duties. Poor leadership among correctional facilities' managers also puts correctional officers' roles at higher risks (Joe, 2015). The leadership drawbacks include the inability to ensure the safe allocation of inmates within the facilities. In essence, lack of proper structures has led to overcrowding within prison facilities. Consequently, the prison officials have to work under increased pressure to meet the increased numbers of inmates.
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Correctional officers also face work-related risks, including the dangers of getting exposed to infectious diseases like the coronavirus. Over the last two years, prison officers have faced higher risks of contracting covid-19 and transmitting it to their families (Schultz et al., 2020). In their practice, the officers have to interact with the inmates, which puts them at increased danger of contracting infectious diseases. While other risks can be easily averted, the officers cannot avoid their interactions with the inmates, as it is the only way of ensuring effective execution of their duties. For instance, the officers involved in training and educational program aimed at equipping inmates with skills have to make direct contact with them. During such training, the officers interact with the inmates at personal levels, thus subjecting them to the risks of contagious diseases. The job does risk not only their lives but also risks those of their families, including relatives, children, and spouses. Therefore, correctional officers are at higher risks of contracting contagious diseases from the inmates.
Prison officers also face higher risks of encountering disruptive inmate behaviors, including prison gangs. According to federal statistics, there are more than 20,000 prison gangs across the US federal and state prisons (Schultz et al. 2020). The gangs pose substantial threats to correctional officers, who lie between the various gang rivalries. A correctional officer serving in a facility with more than three gangs has to identify and deal with the threat posed by each of the gangs. The gangs could also have external links in the society, thus subjecting the correctional officers to increased pressures. For instance, the popular culture, through movies. Has always depicted various instance, whereby prison gangs have used family members to blackmail correctional officers into engaging in unethical behavior (Schultz et al. 2020). Officers involved in such activities face government action, loss of family members, or even murder by the groups. Similarly, the officers not involved in the gang activities also face dangers from the various gangs' warring factors. Therefore, the increasing incidences of gang violence pose higher risks to correctional officers, who have to be careful both in the facilities and social life.
Psychosocial dangers are also key risks affecting correctional officers in the US. The main psychosocial issue affecting the officers is work-family conflict, whereby they have to cope with the tight schedules and the family obligations they have back at home (Russo, 2019). In essence, correctional officers' job is highly demanding because they have to work in shifts all year long. Consequently, the officers have limited time with their spouses and children, which could pose serious dangers to their families and social life in general. Due to continued contact with violence, correctional officers adapt to it, which increases the risks of domestic violence. In essence, the officers could start viewing their families as inmates, thus attacking them. The officers are also more likely to indulge in drug abuse to deal with the strained psychosocial relations. The psychosocial risks also include the increased risks of facing political or media scrutiny from the public (Russo, 2019). In essence, correctional officers, especially those with higher ranks, face the risks of media and political questioning regarding their wealth and relationships with criminal elements. Therefore, this relationship with media and politics puts their lives under high alerts, thus disrupting their normal psychosocial associations.
Mental health challenges are also key problems affecting correctional officers. Correctional officers are exposed to violence during their practice, contributing to post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD). Instances of violence like suicide, physical assault, and gang violence by the inmates increase the chances that correctional officers will face PTSD (Ferdik, 2018). A recent study comparing PTSD among correctional officers established that they are more likely to suffer PTSD than military personnel attached in Iraq or Afghanistan. The study also established that more than 28% of correctional officers have feelings of hopelessness, 38% show little pleasure or interest in performing their roles, and 10% have suicidal thoughts. Such high percentages indicate that correctional officers have severe psychological issues that must be addressed through both the federal and state governments' collective action. Working conditions are key contributors to the increased mental distresses among correctional officers. The officers have to supervise and manage inmates from different backgrounds (Ferdik, 2018). Most of the inmates are convicted of severe criminal acts, which are evident in their actions or words. Consequently, officers have to deal with the abuses and trolling from the criminal inmates. Such conditions increase the risks of mental illness if not addressed through therapeutic procedures.
Burnout and stress are also key risks faced by correctional officers in the US. The officers are at higher risks of heart diseases, high cholesterol, hypertension, and other lifestyle conditions than other professions in the law enforcement sector. In essence, the officers are confined within the same facilities as the inmates (National Institute of Justice, 2017). They have little physical activity, which increases their chances of obesity. Correctional officers have to spend most of their time ensuring the correctional facilities' security, a job that demands being around the facility all the time. On the contrary, other law enforcement officers, including the police, have to respond to crimes, increasing their physical activity and limiting the chances of lifestyle diseases (National Institute of Justice, 2017). Heavy workloads within their work also increase stress, which could worsen some of the lifestyle conditions, including heart attacks. The stress also increases the chances of a poor family and social relationships among the officers.
Physical harassment, including violence sexual harassment, also increases the risks faced by correctional officers. During their practice, correctional officers are always aware of the dangers they face, including physical attacks and assault by the inmate. With criminal records of violence, some inmates could be highly dangerous to the officers, who have to effectively ensure everyone's safety within the facility. Sexual harassment is also a key physical risk faced by the officer during their work (National Institute of Justice, 2017). Correctional officers, especially the females, live in constant fear that the inmates will sexually harass them. Therefore, the officers have to be alert to avoid being caught in situations that increase their chances of being sexually harassed. Riots from the inmates also pose risks of physical assault.
However, despite the dangers they face in the criminal justice system, correctional officers also harness various benefits. The officers have life insurance covers, which include coverage to their families in cases of dangers during the performance of their duties. The officers also enjoy dental and medical insurance covers, including their family members (National Institute of Justice, 2017). Due to their job nature, the federal and state governments have various measures to ensure compensation. For instance, they are provided with special payment terms, including shift differential and overtime pay. In essence, the workforce shortage serves the correctional officers better, as they can earn more money by working overtime. Apart from the government-organized benefits, some US businesses offer discounts to correctional officers, which serves as a motivation to them.
The federal and state government must employ various policies and regulations in addressing the challenges faced by correctional officers in the US. The first measure that should be taken must focus on ensuring better officer to inmate ratios. The current ratio puts the officers at higher risks of physical and mental abuse (Lambert et al., 2018). Essentially, working under uneven ratios increases the chances of physical or sexual assault among officers. Additionally, it also increases their chances of fatigue and, consequently, mental disorders. The two governments must increase their correctional officers' populations to ensure the officers can perform their duties effectively and under little or no pressure. Employing more officers will also provide room for more leaves, thus solving officers' psychosocial problems in the correctional facilities.
Another key policy issue that can be used in addressing the problems faced by correctional officers in the US is therapeutic professionals' use. Counselors must be employed to protect the officer against the eminent psychological dangers they face under their jobs (Lambert et al., 2018). The officers can also be subjected to counseling on drug abuse and family issues, protecting them against the PTSDs they face. Through exposure to violence, the officers become more susceptible to stresses, which require counseling.
Increased budgetary allocation for the correctional services department will also solve most of the officers' challenges. For instance, in the current pandemic, the officers face increased risks of contracting the disease or spreading it to the inmates (Lambert et al. 2018). Through increased government funding, better structures can be created to prevent contact between officers and the inmates. The budgetary expenditure could also enhance technology, thus relieving the correctional officers of some duties.
Conclusively, the US correctional officers face various risks and challenges, which limit their ability to perform their duties effectively. During their practice, the officers face physical, mental, and psychosocial risks. The physical risks include exposure to violence and sexual harassment by the inmates. They are also faced with psychosocial issues, including family breakages and domestic violence. In terms of mental illness, the officers face fatigue which increases their risks of depression. Governmental policies, including increased budgetary allocation and increased employee population, can solve most of the problems facing correctional officers.
References
Ferdik, F. V. (2018). Correctional officer risk perceptions and professional orientations: Examining linkages between the two. Criminal Justice and Behavior , 45 (2), 264-285. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0093854817733496
Joe, D. (2015). Too many inmates, too few correctional officers: A lethal recipe in federal prisons. The Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/federal-eye/wp/2015/09/01/too-many-inmates-too-few-correctional-officers-a-lethal-recipe-in-federal-prisons/
Lambert, E. G. et al. (2018). Exploring the correlates of perceived job dangerousness among correctional staff at a maximum security prison. Criminal justice policy review , 29 (3), 215-239. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0887403415623618
National Institute of Justice (2017). Correctional officer safety and wellness-what we learned from the research literature. https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/correctional-officer-safety-and-wellness-what-we-learned-research-literature
Russo, J. (2019). Workforce issues in corrections. National Institute of Justice. https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/articles/workforce-issues-corrections
Schultz, W. J. et al. (2020). The Floating Signifier of “Radicalization”: Correctional Officers’ Perceptions of Prison Radicalization. Criminal Justice and Behavior , 0093854820969749. https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0093854820969749
