The 7,400 employees taking care of more than 22,000 inmates in 27 state prisons are the biggest source of overtime use in state government, $38.6 million last year, according to the governor?s office ? almost 10 percent of their budget for salaries.
Gov. Martin O?Malley has asked his new StateStat performance measurement program to focus on reducing overtime, but the new secretary of public safety and correctional services, Gary Maynard, said he expects overtime use in the coming year would “stay the same or be reduced a little.”
The Examiner filed a Maryland Public Information Act request seeking a detailed report of state salaries last week. The state is reviewing the request.
“We look to see how we can more efficient,” Maynard said. He said they are filled up in the institutions, “which must be staffed around the clock, 365 days a year.”
Department spokesman Mark Vernarelli said overtime this year is running $10 million ahead of last year?s figure of $21 million for a number of factors ? pay hikes, vacancies among correctional officers and increase in the number of security posts.
“Entry level salary jumped more than $5,000 last year,” Vernarelli said.
Former Gov. Robert Ehrlich added $32 million more in the budget to raise starting officer?s salaries to $34,313 and give others a 10 percent raise, part of an effort to recruit and retain more officers. O?Malley has since added 155 new positions to the budget this year.
At the end of last year, 750 positions in the department were unfilled, according to a legislative budget analysis. The analysis also found that the department had not budgeted enough for overtime pay.
The closure of the House of Correction in Jessup in February also has eased the pressure on overtime created by short staffing, because the guards from the old facility were reassigned to other institutions in the area. But the dispersion of 850 prisoners also has filled up the other institutions in the state.
