Now hiring? Merced County leaders approve $3 million help solve staff shortage at jails
.JPG "People exit the Merced County Sheriff’s Department building located at 700 West 22nd Street in Merced, Calif. The location is also home to the Merced County Jail.")
The Merced County Sheriff’s Office got a boost from the support of local leaders on Tuesday, as the Board of Supervisors unanimously supported the hiring of 20 new officers — a step that Sheriff Vern Warnke said will help his office’s problems with not enough staff .
The 16 additional correctional officer positions and four new Sheriff’s Sergeants jobs comes with a $3 million annual price tag. Despite the cost, Merced County electeds said the additional manpower is what’s needed for the Sheriff’s Office to better perform its duties.
Warnke said existing staff are also overworked.
“On any given night our staffing is so woefully understaffed, and this is going to help a lot,” Warnke told the Merced County Board of Supervisors Tuesday. “This should impact, in a great way, the cost of overtime we’re having to put up with.”
Warnke said nearly all of his staff have been regularly working 16 hour shifts three days a week. Several Merced County Supervisors noted the additional hires have been needed for some time.
Tuesday’s action was catalyzed by an October inspection by the Board of State and Community Corrections of the downtown Merced County Jail, John Latorraca Correctional Center and the Merced County Court Holding Facilities.
The inspection found that both jails needed additional staffing to meet compliance standards and recommended that 20 additional positions be added.
Given the Board of Supervisors’ approval, the hiring process can now commence. Warnke said the Sheriff’s office will be under constant recruitment. New staff will likely be hired in stages at six or eight at a time for training purposes.
“(Staff) are getting fatigued. We’ve got to do something, and this is a huge step in taking care of that problem,” Warnke said.
The Board of Supervisors in December also unanimously approved an allocation of more than $30 million in matching funds to expand the Latorraca Center. The planned expansion has been ongoing for five years, during which time the estimated cost to upgrade has expanded by about 58% from $45 million to $71.3 million.
