correctional officer

security guard

investigator

canine handler

senior training specialist

Alabama Department of Corrections

A typical day at Holman Correctional Facility is quite an interesting experience everyday. Everyday is pretty much different and most incidents that occur are different as well. I have learned so much out of the eleven years I've been employed which includes supervising or managing overall staff on a shift, such as sergeants, corrections officers, civilian staff, and inmates/Manage day-to-day operations and any emergencies that may arise/ensuring that a shift meets all security standards by coordinating shift activities, security procedures and administrative reports/overseeing activities such as staff allocations, shift briefings, inspections, roll and sick calls, recreation and work periods/often directing the management of inmates when they need to leave the facility for court or medical appointments/identify training needs for other officers and arrange training for them/evaluate reports made by officers and appraise their performance, etc.. The workplace culture can be a bit fast pace and stressful at times when dealing with supervisors, subordinates, and inmates. However, a person must be able to handle each different while maintaining their professionalism at all times. I would say my hardest part on the job would be dealing with people who basically have different personalities as well as opinions. The most enjoyable part of the job would be counseling the inmates and officers when they have problems but want to better themselves.

I would check out inmates every morning and be assigned a task by a supervisor.  I would then assemble tools and arrange for transportation  to the assigned work area.  Once there I would assign specific tasks to inmates and insure they had the proper tools to complete the task and knew how to operate the tools safely.  I would continue to supervise and instruct the inmates to the standards they should accomplish for the rest of the day.  And at all times maintain a accurate count of the inmates to insure there were no escapes.  At the end of the work day I would check the inmates back into the institution and conducts searches of the inmates to insure no contraband is smuggled into the institution.  
  I have learned patience and how to communicate with all types of individuals with many different  backgrounds.
  I enjoyed my co-workers and the team type environment.
  The hardest part of my job was to see an inmate who had no intention of leaving behind a life of crime, especially a young man with his whole life ahead of him.
  The most enjoyable part of my job was to take an inmate who had never held a job before and teach them what it meant to have a job.  The responsibility of using equipment, how to take care of it, maintain it.  Teach them to set standards for themselves and put forth effort to accomplish goals set for them.

This job is not for the weak especially if you enjoy time for yourself, family, friends etc. When you do become a full time CO don’t expect to go home after eight hours everyday at minimum you’ll have to work sixteen hour shifts twice a week not including your mandatory you have to do Three times a month. On top of mandatory you’ll have a mandation order your camp follows if anyone calls in which is fine for emergency but you’ll more than likely be kept even if the next shift doesn’t need you just because. This job demands you stay awake and alert and sharp which is easy for the first eight not so much for the second and you may think you have a choice in the matter which you do you can say no but you’ll be written up in the process for even thinking you can have a life outside of the ADOC. My biggest gripe isn’t even being asked to stay over for the next shift it’s the being told part where you know every plan you had that day is now forfeit and there’s nothing you can do about it. It doesn’t help that there’s no penalty for people who repeatly call out or supervisor that actually keep note of it making it to a point you get penalized for even showing up for work that day. Long story short outdated over extensive mandatory makes job harder than needed

What is the best part of working at the company?
The Alabama Department of Corrections is a joke. They care absolutely nothing about their employees as human beings. Every prison in the state is understaffed to the point that they "mandate" (force mandatory overtime) a certain number of hours per correctional officer per month to work. The worst part is if you refuse this ridiculous work schedule, they give you written reprimands, that stop your already unfairly small pay raises, at the bare minimum.  

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
MANDATORY OVERTIME, POOR TREATMENT OF STAFF, AND LACK OF CARE FOR STAFF.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Evil and draining to the point that it begins to change who you are as a person, for the worst. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Clock in at 2 AM (to avoid having to stay until 10 PM for a mandate) and work for 16 hours in a security fault-ridden maximum-security prison with 1300-1500 inmates to supervise and only 18-30 other officers to assist. To top that off, the prison (St. Clair Correctional Facility) was so violent that we expected at least one serious stabbing a day.

The pay is abysmal. They just now changed the pay for starting COs to $50+k and didn’t change the pay of the guys that’s been working there for years. 
They don’t pay admin well and constantly remind them that they’re replaceable and non-essential. There is no job security for admin either- especially with these new prisons in the works. 
They don’t acknowledge advanced degrees. 
They play favorites like an Olympic sport. 
They treat the inmates poorly and the employees worse than that. 
Inmates can have tablets and Wi-Fi, but employees can’t even have their own cell phone or a Fitbit. Make that make sense. 
There is zero advancement for admin staff unless you want triple the work for a couple thousand extra at top out- not worth it. 
You’ll get a few really good employees and they’ll get run off cause they can’t be bought, aren’t corrupt and actually good people. They don’t promote competence here, they promote friends. 
And every time some suit tells us things are changing and getting better- it gets way worse. Do yourself a favor and don’t work here until they show that things have changed, not while they tell you it’s changing, or avoid it all together. 

As the confidential Executive Assistant, I worked directly for the Commissioner of the Alabama Department of Corrections, fielding phone calls, drafting, composing and responding to correspondences as required.  Field phone calls from a variety of entities, Governor's Office Staff, other Corrections' Commissioners and Directors, internal and external law enforcement agencies. Responsible for planning and organizing the Department's Annual Picnic and Christmas Luncheon for approximately 400 ADOC employees. Supervised civilian Front Desk Receptionist and assigned Inmate Runners.  Ordered and maintained supplies for the Commissioner's Staff, drafted various certificates and letters of appreciation, commendation, as applicable. Responsible for accounts payable/receivables involving Commissioner's Staff.  Arranged travel and lodging for Commissioner's out of state business affaires. Responsible for ensuring employees, as well as those with CDL licenses completed  monthly and quarterly random drug screening.

On a typical day you should work 12 hours, however, due to staffing issues you are there for 16 hours. It is hard to put into words how many things you learn from this job, because it is something new every day. The most important thing that I learned from this job is management skills! Being able to convey directions to an individual with a criminal past without causing tension is a major part of this job. The management at this job is average, as with most jobs. You will have some supervisors that are outstanding and some that do not need to be in a position of power. The hardest part of this job is the fear of not knowing if you will be going home the next day. When the need arises you have to be willing to do whatever is necessary to quell a situation. The most enjoyable part of the job is being able to see former offenders make a positive change in their lives and become a functioning member of society. I have personally had 3 former inmates see me in public and say that my attitude and actions towards them made them really think about the path that they were on and decide to change it for the better.

Unless you are at the very end of the road as far as employment is concerned, do NOT work for the ADOC. Your supervisors practically hate you, and look for reasons to write you up. The inmates are actually treated with more respect than officers are, and that isn't saying a whole lot. When you are a trainee, you are supposed to be under constant supervision, but there are many instances where trainees are left alone most of, if not all day with over 300 inmates, who are practically unsupervised. They say the pay is great, but you have to work 16 hours a day, 5 or 6 days a week to accumulate enough overtime for a big check. In other words, you have to give up your personal life and live at the facility to run up a decent check. Most staff members are dirty, and even some supervisors, further jeopardizing your safety. Don't take my word for it, just read the latest news about ADOC about what is going on. Unfortunately, a lot of other things are covered up and don't make the news, so there's that. All in all, a terrible place to work. Stay away.

For a medium security prison, I was dumbfounded at the lack of professionalism executed by the officers. I witnessed the officers engage in conversation and behavior with the inmates as if they were equals. A trainer told me " if you really want to know what's going on around here, ask the inmates, they know everything". I can imagine that, because the officers engage in conversation about their work and personal lives in front of the" runners". The inmates congregate and hang out in the shift office. I felt so unsafe! And I've never seen so many flies INSIDE a workplace in my entire work career. You do not clock out for a break, you eat at will and you may go to the restroom, which is in the hallway of the inmates dorm (the office was adjacent). No cellphone or reading material may be brought in. You feel like a prisoner. But the inmates have walkman radios and TVs. Worst experience of my life! Not worth all the coins in the US Mint.

 supervising inmate housing units and checking on inmates who are segregated into separate quarters for administrative or punitive measures, instructing inmates about how to properly clean and maintain their living units so that an acceptable standard of sanitation is upheld. Monitoring the contact inmates have with the outside world and with each other is another important aspect of being a correctional officer. Officers are responsible for checking inmate mail for contraband, patrolling the outside of the institution to ensure security, and monitoring and screening any inmate visitors. Inmates must be kept in check when they are moved to new locations throughout the day, such as the food service area. The officer must report any signs of tension between inmates that might lead to a fight.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Correctional officer 133 salaries reported	$31.06 per hour
Security guard 23 salaries reported	$18.45 per hour
Investigator 28 salaries reported	$67,267 per year
Canine handler 13 salaries reported	$60,862 per year
Senior training specialist 6 salaries reported	$70,643 per year

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