Corrections secretary: Prison staffing shortages stabilizing after 2021 spike

Critically high turnover rates in the South Dakota prison system that spiked last year have begun to stabilize, according to the state’s new Department of Corrections secretary.

But DOC Secretary Kellie Wasko during testimony to lawmakers Wednesday said the agency has had to get creative to address staffing shortages, like moving prisoners between locations and reducing inmate programming services.

“That’s corrections 101,” she told the 10-member Government Operations and Audit Committee (GOAC) during a briefing on a 59-page report outlining recommended state-wide changes to the corrections system.

California-based CGL Companies compiled the report following a leadership shakeup within the DOC and the state penitentiary in Sioux Falls last summer when allegations of workplace misconduct, nepotism and sexual harassment surfaced.

While Wasko addressed GOAC for more than an hour, she provided no details as to what led to last summer's turmoil within the state agency, which led to the forced retirement of her predecessor as well as firings of multiple brass at the Sioux Falls prison.

Much of her testimony centered around ongoing challenges to recruit and retain prison staff.

And in the meantime, DOC is managing the shortage through a number of changes, including moving minimum security prisoners in Sioux Falls to a facility in Rapid City. That has freed up staff in Sioux Falls to deal with higher risk offenders that are housed at the penitentiary, Wasko said.

Some recreational or gym activities have been canceled at times in order to free up staff to address housing requirements.

DOC report: Gov. Kristi Noem, DOC release report that followed probe into nepotism, sexual harassment allegations

Beyond staffing shortages, the report also addressed cramped and aging facilities, concluding that the century-old penitentiary is obsolete. Overcrowding at the women’s prison in Pierre also earned attention in the report and Wasko's testimony to lawmakers.

“In all of my time, I’ve never seen a facility so crowded,” she said, noting that the number of women being housed there has reached a point where space typically used for programming has had to be repurposed.

Overcrowding in the prisons doesn't come as a revelation to lawmakers, who have taken steps to address it. For instance, the Legislature this year authorized the purchase of land in Rapid City, while also budgeting and planning for a new women’s facility in Pennington County.

The Legislature has also signed off on wage increases for prison staffers, authorizing 6% raises for DOC employees starting July 1.

DOC had 104% increase in unfilled positions

That move came after the Argus Leader in August 2021 reported that DOC saw a 104% increase in unfilled positions from July 2020 to July 2021.

And most of those open jobs are in the DOC's Sioux Falls correctional facility. That data did not include a series of terminations and departures within the DOC that were announced by the governor's office in July 2021.

Rep. Chris Karr, a Sioux Falls Republican, asked if the DOC's short-term plan was to address staffing over the next three to six months.

“It’s been kind of stabilized,” said Wasko, who did not provide updated staffing metrics. “Our losses and our gains have balanced out. At least since I got here, I haven’t heard of an increase in people leaving."

She noted, though, some remaining staffers have expressed interest in leaving the DOC due to rising pay scales being offered by other correction industry employers. In Minnehaha County, for instance, jailers are paid $3 an hour more than what the DOC is paying its guards.

More state news: South Dakota prison system sees a 104% jump in unfilled jobs since July 2020

Rep. Linda Duba, a Sioux Falls Democrat, asked if staffing shortages in the DOC are creating danger for staff and the general public.

Wasko downplayed that.

“If I thought that our staff at any moment were unsafe, I would do what no correctional administrator wants to do anywhere, and that is to lock everybody in the institution down,” Wasko said.

A lack of drug addiction counseling in the prison system also garnered discussion among GOAC members and the secretary.

Sen. David Wheeler pointed out that the consultant report found that only 7% of offenders are receiving substance abuse services, despite more than 19% of inmates being incarcerated for drug and alcohol offenses. That number doesn’t include other offenses that were influenced by drugs or alcohol.

“To me,” Wheeler said, “that number is appalling.”

Wasko said that expanding substance abuse treatment a goal.

“You’re right,” she said. “The numbers are appalling.”

This article originally appeared on Sioux Falls Argus Leader: DOC Secretary: Prison staffing shortages stabilizing after 2021 spike