More than 100 prison guards picketed outside the state's oldest prison on Tuesday calling for an end to new work rules they say are creating unsafe working conditions.
At the entrance to the Waupun prison first built in 1852, the guards carried signs that read "Stop Attacks on Correctional Officers!" and "Scott Walkers Tools Don't Include Institutional Security." The governor's tools is a reference the guards loss of collective bargaining rights that were axed in the Governor's budget.
Mark Elliot has worked at Waupun for 24 years. He says without bargaining rights there is virtually no communication between guards and wardens which means no give and take on proposed new rules he says will make it harder for guard to discipline inmates when they misbehave.
"When you get rid of stuff like that and don't consult anybody or ask front line workers opinions of what's going on, what's your opinion the best way to do this you guys do it every day, you're gonna have no motivation for inmates to continue to have good behavior and in the end what's our product we're putting back out to the streets," Elliot said.
He says the lack of communication has led to the lowest morale among guards he's seen in his career. But a statement released by the Department of Corrections in response to the guards grievances says there is no evidence that short staffing at many prisons is causing low morale. It says the new policies that replaced collective bargaining has saved money by cutting down on overtime costs.
