CHARLESTON, W.Va. — The top man with Corrections in West Virginia said the challenge of his agency is not day to day, but actually hour by hour these days. Corrections and Rehabilitation Commissioner William Marshall spoke on MetroNews Talkline Wednesday about the dramatic manpower shortage his agency is facing and the crises those low manpower levels have created.
“We have to have our employees not be afraid to come to leadership and say, ‘Hey I’m struggling here and I need some help.’ We’ve got to improve the lines of communications to keep our freshest people on the floors to operate our prisons, jails, and juvenile centers,” he explained.
Long hours, low pay, and difficult circumstances have made for an ominous situation in the agency. Marshall said the current climate is one they have never experienced before in West Virginia before. They’re in a position where those in the pool of potential candidates to become corrections officers have multiple options.
“We’re competing against everybody and before that was never a problem. We’re competing with officers from the State Police, local city police departments and the local sheriff’s departments. We’re all competing for the same applicants and the same candidates,” he said.
Marshall tried to be optimistic and said he believed there is a way forward.
“I’ve been able to identify several leaders that will help us get to a level of performance we can all benefit from through communication and through more training. Obviously more officers and more employees would definitely help, but I feel like we’re on the right path right now,” he explained.
His remarks come even as the entire agency is in a state of emergency and National Guard troops and Natural Resources Police are pitching in to help cover some of the shortfalls in the system. Marshall was quick to acknowledge the assistance from those other agencies. The optimism came despite a bill which would have given corrections officers a substantial raise died in the recent legislative session. Still, he tried to put the best face on the situation he could.
“Even when things are perfect in our profession, it’s challenging. We understand the challenges we’re facing. I certainly understand what I think we need to do to make the job better,” he said.