registered nurse

maintenance person

Dauphin County Prison

The prison is critically low on officers.  Turn over rate is high here.  Having limited officers leads to the prison being locked down constantly.  This effects the Treatment Department.  We are unable to run group counseling for inmates, and don't have any drug and alcohol counseling for inmates.  You don't have to worry about inner department discipline if you are liked.  We lost a supervisor who had 10 to 11 years of experience with the prison recently.  Your typical day is receiving inmate request slips and answering what you can, and forwarded request slips to other departments.  The hardest part of your job will be your co-workers.  There is a fostered environment of gossip and hostile work environment.  The most enjoyable part of the job is having weekends off, but they go by quickly.  We are also understaffed in the treatment department as many counselors are covering two housing units when there is supposed to be one counselor per block.  You will promote from Treatment Specialist 1 to Treatment Specialist 2 after two years of service.  Your pay is statistically lower than surrounding counties or state employment.  We are the most educated and underpaid staff in the prison.  There is a reason why the Treatment Specialist position is constantly open for applications. 

The job was surprisingly enjoyable, obviously you work with inmates and that can be intimidating for someone who isn't use to working in that type of environment. As long as you treat people with respect and not just seem them as "inmates" you will be fine. This job is not for faint hearted people, you need to be assertive, firm and set boundaries, some will try and push those boundaries and will test your patience. You will get to hear a lot of interesting stories and speak to people of all types of backgrounds. Part of the job is running assigned groups, material for groups is left up to you to find or you can ask for help. I'm not sure if this was mentioned on my interview but once you enter the facility you cannot leave until your shift is done, obviously you can't have your cell phone inside or a smart watch. 

One thing that you will eventually get to experience is that everyone seems to be in everyone's business and very clicky. Some workers have the "don't come to jail" attitude and that isn't helpful for anyone. Some CO's are cool and others are barely bearable. Supervisor is inexperienced in this type of environment and is not open to ideas that differ from her own.

Staff are mean. Willing to promote toxic individuals. Environment is  unsanitary. Low pay.  No incentives, no sign-on bonuses, no appreciation.  If you are looking to find love, and have low self-esteem you can choose to find an inmate - the only thing that would happen is that they allow you to quit.  Drugs are a constant issue within the jail, inmates are constantly smoking unknown substances.  Staff are dirty and no one is searched prior to their shifts.  If you are able to advance at all and be promoted, expect everyone to stab you in the back and treat you horribly.  If you bring a complaint or situation to your supervisor, you are expected to ignore it and nothing will be resolved.  Little to no trainings.  If you do get a training the quality is poor.  Dauphin County is cheap.  

Work-life balance
Work-life balance at Dauphin County Prison is ridiculous. You get drafted every day to do double shifts.

Pay & benefits
My pay and benefits at Dauphin County Prison are ok, more than minimum wage.

Job security and advancement
In terms of job security at Dauphin County Prison, I think it’s a joke.

Management
In general, managers at Dauphin County Prison are donkeys.

Culture
Collaboration with my colleagues at Dauphin County Prison is a joke. It’s like being in high school all over again. Everybody clicks up and gives you the cold shoulder.

Overall
My experience working at Dauphin County Prison was a waste of my time. The animals at the circus gets treated better than workers at this place.

What is the best part of working at the company?
There are none. Administration treats you terribly. Mandatory OT/16 hr shifts, short staffed, terrible leadership. 

Inmates are not the stressors. It’s the terrible leadership and supervisors. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Everything. Admin makes nothing easy and does not value their employees. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Harassing. From the Director of Corrections down. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Awful. Forced to work 16 hour shifts. Administration cares more about not hurting an inmates feelings than any of their employees.

This was the worst job I ever had.  I actually quit without having another job lined up, because I couldn't take it another day.  The only thing that seperates the staff from the inmates is the orange jumpsuit.  The managment is corrupt and they breed corrupt employees. The inmates are treated inhumanely, the living conditions is horrible.  Everyday I had to clean mouse feces off my phone and computer before I could work.  The job offers NO autonomy or independent thinking.  Even as a counselor you have to run everything by the supervisor and she makes everything difficult.

Corrections is hard. It is no different at Dauphin County Prison. We are compensated well to do a job that the public does not understand. The hardest part of the job is keeping your professional life and personal life separate. The key is to remain professional even when dealing with unpleasant people. The most enjoyable part of the job is the fact that you get the chance to make a real difference in the community. This job is not for everyone but it is a great opportunity to the right person.

It’s a good stepping stone but I don’t think I’d recommend for a long term career. If you stick it out sure the pension is good and you have great benefits but over time the job will change you, you’ll have to deal with rampant drug use in the facility, shady staff here and there that put you and everyone in danger by bringing in contraband and getting caught into situations with inmates, administration says they care but in reality actions don’t show that. The only people that have your back are others officers and even then it’s a toss up at times.

What is the best part of working at the company?
A Gold platinum diamond Health Benefits and  5 yrs to be vested for a retirement check

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
Hyper vigilance that leads to stress

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Very childish, poor communication and micro management 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Depends if the prison is running under normal operation or locked down

I definitely wouldn't recommend working here.  poor working environment.  poor staff support.  if you don't fit in with the staff they will not support you to learn the job.    they will try to sabotage you to to want to leave your position and cause problems for you with management and the prison management system.  

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Registered nurse 1 salary reported	$35.00 per hour
Maintenance person 1 salary reported	$62,317 per year

Working at Dauphin County Prison: Company Overview and Reviews

Dauphin County Prison

Dauphin County Prison Ratings

Popular jobs at Dauphin County Prison

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected