CCPOAIronwood.com - Internet Bulletin Board for Members of ISP Chapter CCPOA

Schwarzenegger has officially thrown his hat in for his re-election [LINK] campaign next November – so what does that mean to the members of CCPOA and all of the other labor unions in California that the Governator is trying to screw? It means it’s time for us to start campaigning – and campaign hard.

If you want anything done you have to make a commitment and see it through to the end. CCPOA has earned itself a reputation for never giving up, never surrendering – and why not? It’s members walk the toughest beat in the state – surely they can gather together and walk the line toward victory against a Governor who would see them lose everything they’ve worked so hard to gain.

The multi-union million dollar television commercial campaign against the upcoming ballot measures scheduled for a vote in this year’s November 8 election, as well as to make California residents aware of everything Schwarzenegger would cut in order to achieve his goals. Our state relies on its public servants – correctional officers, local law enforcement, nurses, fire fighters and teachers – much more than it realizes. It’s time to educate not just our friends and our family members, but our neighbors, our church and social communities and everyone within earshot of all the reasons NOT to pass the November 8 measures – and why NOT to re-elect Governor Schwarzenegger.

For more information on all that is at stake for CCPOA members and other state labor unions, please re-reach Chuck Alexander’s “The Fight is On… Are We Prepared?” letter to union members. [LINK - in .pdf format] Knowledge IS power. Learn what we are up against and spread the word.

At Ironwood State Prison in Blythe, CA. with approximately 4500 inmates housed there, concerns are growing that Ironwood may experience incidences such as Calipatria, Salinas Valley, or even CIM. These institutions have seen serious incidences where staff has been beaten, slashed, stabbed and one officer killed in the line of duty.

So far this year two new officers were attacked with makeshift knives at Salinas Valley State Prison, A riot at Calipatria State Prison left at least 16 officers and 20 inmates injured and 1 inmate dead. Finally, last January, a Correctional Officer was killed at California Institution for Men at Chino, California.

Now questions are being asked at Ironwood State Prison about staff safety. CCPOA Chapter Vice President Terry Hammon says it is only a matter of time. “At times we’re running normal operations with reduced staffing levels” Hammon stated. He also acknowledged that when administrators do interrupt programs because of staff shortages, the inmates become angry adding pressure to the entire situation.

Representing over 700 officers, Hammon says staff is forced to work 16 hours a day twice a week. Some officers on graveyard shifts are forced to work 16 hours, go home for 8 hours and are then forced to 16 more hours. “Officers are tired, mentally beaten by all of these hours on the job” Hammon says. The correctional officer’s union says the department is to blame by closing the academy too often. Department officials blame officer sick leave as the biggest problem. Hammon says “What choice do officers have when they know they will be forced to work up to forty hours in three days, they are beat”.

Now the administration at Ironwood is trying to reel in some of the privileges inmates have enjoyed for years. More strict limits on inmate personal property and the smoking ban in prisons may elevate an already tense situation. Hammon says officers are now required to prohibit inmates from sitting against housing units. “For years inmates were allowed to sit in the shade of these buildings and now were saying no they can’t. No warning start enforcing it now”

All of this makes for a powder keg Hammon claims, and there seems to be no relief in sight. While Ironwood should receive around 15 new officers in the next academy, Hammon predicts 30 officers will be lost through retirement or transfers before they arrive.

Hammon finished by saying “This Warden has shown us he has no interest in our concerns, It’s like the warden is telling us ‘Go! Walk to your deaths and don’t argue about it”.