National Guard may be sent to NY prisons as officers' strike enters third day
State prison guards protest long hours, unsafe conditions
Corrections officers from multiple state prisons are taking part in an unsanctioned strike. They are protesting long hours and unsafe working conditions. FOX 5 NY’s Lisa Evers has the details.
NEW YORK - The National Guard may be deployed to New York state prisons.
This comes in the wake of an unauthorized corrections officers' strike which is now in its third day.
What will Hochul do if the strike does not end?
What they're saying:
If the strike does not end, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said she will send in troops to protect officers who are still on the job and the surrounding community.
"The illegal and unlawful actions being taken by a number of correction officers must end immediately," Governor Hochul said in a statement. "We will not allow these individuals to jeopardize the safety of their colleagues, incarcerated people, and the residents of communities surrounding our correctional facilities."
Union officials say they did not order the strike and are encouraging officers to go back to work.
According to officials, strikes are taking place at 25 of the 42 state prisons.
What are corrections officers demanding?
The other side:
The state corrections officer union says its "members’ backs are against the wall." They’re demanding higher pay, stricter security checks for prison visitors and a rollback on prison reforms, including those that limit solitary confinement.
Numbers of staff failing to enter the facilities were not immediately available, but WIVB reported at least some staff refuse to enter their shifts at 25 prisons. Local media reported there was picketing outside multiple detention facilities.
"They know they can be fined and disciplined," Kenny Gold of the New York State Correctional Officers & Police Benevolent Association told local television station WIVB at a protest outside the Collins Correctional Facility on Monday.
Corrections officials met with union officials Tuesday, Hochul’s statement said, adding she’d compel workers to head back to their shifts.
The strike follows renewed calls for accountability for prison guards, after video released in January showed corrections officers beating a handcuffed man at the Marcy Correctional Facility. He died the next day and the Governor eventually ordered the firing of prison staffers. The death was ruled was ruled a homicide earlier in February.
The Source: This article contains information from Governor Hochul's office and reporting from the Associated Press.