Report Summary

Conclusion

Background

Alabama has historically struggled to hire and retain correctional officers. To address this, the Alabama Department of Corrections (ADOC) established a recruitment and retention program in 2019 that provided bonuses up to $7,500. The program expired at the end of 2022, but eligible officers can still earn bonuses through 2025. Additionally, ADOC raised correctional officer salaries by 5%, created a correctional officer senior classification, and increased starting pay to over $50,000 annually in 2023. By FY23’s end, ADOC had paid nearly $10 million in bonuses, with 660 employees still eligible for $1.8 million more.

Key Findings

• Correctional officers are less likely to resign after implementation of the compensation and classification changes.
• ADOC has avoided between $7.9 million and $10 million in voluntary turnover cost since FY19.
• ADOC’s correctional officer turnover rates are better than other states.
• ADOC’s correctional officer turnover is consistently higher than other state law enforcement positions.
• Compensation changes have not improved hiring during the review period.

The act also granted a one-time, two-step salary increase for all employees in the correctional officer classification series, effectively raising correctional officer salaries 5% across the board. During this same time frame, the salary ranges for these classifications were increased, resulting in a higher minimum and maximum salary for each classification. In addition to the compensation changes, the Alabama State Personnel Department, working with ADOC, also created a new Correctional Officer, Senior classification. ^_[1] With this new classification, correctional officers were provided an additional promotional opportunity. This new classification created another opportunity for salary increases for existing correctional officers beginning with provisional appointments on February 1, 2020. ^_[iv] As with any merit system classification, an employee entering the Correctional Officer, Senior classification would be eligible for an initial 5% (two-step) salary increase and an additional 5% salary increase at the end of an initial six-month probationary period.

In March of 2023, the salary ranges and starting pay were again raised for correctional officers. ^_[v] The most significant of these changes was increasing the starting pay of Correctional Officer Trainees to over $50,000 a year (previously $33,381). Combined, the changes to compensation and classification represent substantial monetary incentives to become and remain employed with the Alabama Department of Corrections.

At the close of FY23, ADOC had paid $9,746,568 in recruitment and retention bonuses with roughly 660 employees still eligible to receive up to $1,800,000 in bonuses.

Purpose and Scope of the Evaluation

This evaluation sought to examine the effectiveness of the bonuses by whether they impacted the recruitment and retention of correctional officers for the Department of Corrections. Due to the compact timing of all the compensation changes, it is not possible to delineate the impacts of just the Recruitment and Retention Bonus Program from the other compensation changes. As such, this evaluation seeks to determine the impact of the totality of compensation changes. Because the act creating the bonus program specifically states recruitment and retention was its purpose, the evaluation analyzed both turnover and hiring.

For the purposes of determining that impact, employment records from the State Personnel Department were obtained and analyzed from FY15 through FY23. A date of May 29, 2019, was selected to differentiate pre- and post- program changes because it represents the earliest point as which changes to compensation could be officially communicated. The methodology created a pre-program length of 56 months and a post-program length of 52 months.

Statistical analysis was performed analyzing differences in hiring, retention, and turnover between pre-program and post-program data. A turnover cost model was built to analyze annual turnover cost and potential avoided cost from the program. See Data and Methodologies for more information and details of the analysis.

Summary of Findings

Correctional officers are less likely to resign after implementation of the compensation and classification changes. Correctional officer resignations declined by an annual average of over 4% during the post-program period. Voluntary turnover also decreased for Correctional Officer Trainees by over 5%. The statistically significant effect for correctional officers resulted in an estimated 140 officers retained, nearly 17% of the current correctional officers.

Correctional officer turnover costs ADOC over $11,000,000 a year. The time it takes to hire a new officer, train them, and fill a vacant position is nearly 17 weeks on average. The expense of covering a vacant position with overtime coupled with training cost drives turnover costs for the department.

ADOC has avoided between $7.9 million and $10 million in voluntary turnover cost during the post-program period. With annual turnover cost averaging over $60,000 per separation, ADOC has avoided significant costs from reduced resignations. However, the avoided cost to date only covers part of the full cost of compensation changes.

ADOC’s correctional officer turnover rates are better than other states. Nearly all states (45) have experienced a decline in correctional officer staffing over the last several years. While Alabama is among the states dealing with the decline, Alabama consistently has a lower correctional officer turnover rate than surrounding states. Additionally, several states are attempting to address their staffing issues with bonuses and other compensation changes similar to Alabama.

ADOC’s correctional officer turnover is consistently higher than other state law enforcement positions. Correctional officer turnover is higher than that of state troopers, probation and parole officers, and conservation officers even though pay and benefits are largely comparable.

Compensation changes have not improved hiring during the review period. Correctional officer hiring rates declined for most of the post-program period. The inability to hire officers more than offsets the improved turnover rates, resulting in more vacancies within the correctional officer position. There is some evidence of improved hiring rates for FY23 which has continued into FY24 – beyond the scope of this evaluation.

Correctional Security Guards have helped balance staffing rates. The hiring of over 1,300 Correctional Security Guards since FY19 has kept overall staffing rates level. These positions free up correctional officers for posts that require certified law enforcement.

Detailed Findings

1.0 Turnover of Correctional Officers

Correctional officers are less likely to resign after implementation of the compensation and classification changes. ^_[2] During the post-program study period, correctional officers were 28% less likely to resign from the department than they were during the pre-program period.

Correctional officer voluntary turnover ^_[3] – separations based on resignations – averaged 14.78% annually during the pre-program period. After several compensation changes were made, the voluntary turnover rate decreased to an annual average of 10.6% during the post-program period. See Figure 2.

It should also be noted that voluntary turnover for the Correctional Officer Trainees is down an annualized average over 5% during the post-program period, although the difference was not measured to be statistically significant. There has also been a slight increase in resignations among supervisors. ^_[4] See Table 1.

Correctional officer turnover costs ADOC over $11,000,000 a year on average. Turnover is costly. When an employee leaves, the organization incurs direct costs such as hiring and recruitment expenses, onboarding and developing new hires, and separation payouts. Additionally, there are indirect costs like productivity loss from unfilled positions during the transition period and the time it takes for new employees to reach full productivity. Figure 3 shows the breakdown of these turnover costs for ADOC from FY15 to FY23.

Between FY19 and FY23, the individual cost of correctional officer turnover rose from $55,176 to $78,402 – a weighted average cost of $64,635. During that same period, ADOC averaged 177 correctional officer separations per year for all reasons – retirements, dismissals, and resignations – which is 40% fewer separations per year than in the pre-program period. Despite an individual turnover cost that is 71% higher in FY23 than it was in FY15, the total annual correctional officer turnover cost for ADOC has declined. See Figure 4.

ADOC has avoided between $7.9 million and $10 million in voluntary turnover cost during the post-program period. The cost avoidance is attributable to the reduced number of resignations among correctional officers since the beginning of compensation changes (140). While this amount does not cover the full cost to the department of the total compensation changes, it does defray the cost of those changes. It should also be noted that improved turnover rates will help the department make progress in reaching the staffing goals set by the federal court in Braggs v. Dunn.

ADOC’s correctional officer turnover rates are better than other states. A review of correctional officer turnover rates among surrounding states shows that Alabama’s turnover rate is much lower. Even when including the higher volatility positions like correctional officer trainee and security guard, ADOC’s turnover rate never exceeds 30% a year. In contrast, recent correctional officer turnover rates in Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, Tennessee, and South Carolina are all above 35%. ^_[vi] In some instances, rates have even been reported above 100%.

These high turnover rates among other states have compelled policymakers to make or suggest compensation changes like those taken by Alabama. Florida has introduced salary increases and recruitment and retention bonuses in the last year. Georgia has raised the salary in back-to-back years for correctional officers, and Mississippi increased officer salaries by 10% in 2022. Non-neighboring states have also made significant compensation adjustments in recent years. In general, most states are dealing with a decline in correctional officers. See Figure 5. These trends are forcing states to address the issue, primarily through increased compensation.

While ADOC’s correctional officer turnover may be lower than other states, it is consistently higher than other Alabama state law enforcement positions. Surveys conducted by the American Correctional Association regularly cite inadequate pay as a top reason for correctional officer turnover. Other studies indicate that this is particularly a factor when the pay is low relative to other law enforcement positions. The recent compensation changes for correctional officers addressed both of those oft-cited factors. Correctional officer turnover is consistently more than 30% higher than state law enforcement officers with the Alabama Law Enforcement Agency, the Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles, and the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, even though these positions offer similarly competitive pay and benefits. See Figure 6.

This indicates that while pay is an important factor in recruiting and retaining correctional officers, it is not the only factor. The other top factors that are consistently cited in studies and surveys are:

• High Stress and Dangerous Work Environment: The stress and danger associated with the job can lead to burnout and high turnover rates.
• Supervisors: Quality supervisors can mitigate many problems an employee might have. In contrast, a lack of trust, perception of unfair treatment, or favoritism among supervisors can lead to low morale and high turnover.
• Staffing Shortages and Overwork: In many cases, correctional facilities are understaffed, leading to mandatory overtime for existing officers. This can contribute to fatigue and dissatisfaction among staff, further exacerbating retention issues.
• High Rates of Injury and Illness: Correctional officers are at risk of sustaining injuries or developing health problems due to the nature of their work, including physical altercations with inmates and exposure to infectious diseases. Concerns about workplace safety can deter potential candidates and contribute to retention challenges.
• Limited Resources and Support: Some correctional facilities may lack adequate resources, training, and support systems for their officers, which can impact job satisfaction and retention rates. Without sufficient support, officers may feel overwhelmed and disillusioned with their roles.

Correctional Security Guards have helped balance staffing rates. In FY19, ADOC, working with the State Personnel Department, created the correctional security guard classification to increase the number of security personnel employed. This new classification does not require the full, ten-week Alabama Peace Officers Standards and Training Commission (APOSTC) course and therefore, represents an easier point of entry. At the close of FY23, ADOC had hired 1,334 Correctional Security Guards. The overall effect has balanced staffing rates for the department. See Figure 8.

In theory, the correctional security guard position should also create an internal pool of candidates to recruit into correctional officer positions. Once the employees become familiar with employment in the department and working inside a state prison, the fear of the unknown should be assuaged to some degree. Familiarity, combined with higher income opportunities, should lead to promotions. However, of all the individuals that started employment with ADOC as a correctional security guard, only 3% obtained correctional officer status. One explanation for the low conversion rate is the inability of Correctional Security Guards to meet the necessary physical and background requirements to achieve APOSTC certification.

CONCLUSION

Correctional officer staffing rates continued to decline while separations outpace hiring for nearly a decade. While recent compensation changes have reduced voluntary turnover for correctional officers, the avoided cost only accounts for a fraction of the overall expense for increasing compensation. As correctional officer pay is now comparable to other state law enforcement positions and hiring is on the rise, the Alabama Department of Corrections may have to explore other methods to continue to reduce turnover and increase hiring.