US prisons face worsening staff shortages amid pandemic

Washington, Nov 3 (IANS) Prisons across the US have been facing more severe staff shortages as officers have resigned in droves amid the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a news report.

"By failing to protect prisoners from Covid, the criminal justice system not only created an unfair risk of severe illness and death for the incarcerated, but the increased Covid risk to employees has undoubtedly contributed to staffing shortages," Xinhua news agency quoted the AP report citing University of Michigan economist Betsey Stevenson as saying.

Meanwhile, for the officers left behind, worsening shortages have made an already difficult job unbearable, the AP report said.

Some prisons in state of Georgia reported up to 70 per cent vacancy rates, while state of Florida has temporarily closed three prisons because of understaffing, it said.

Staff shortages have reportedly long been a challenge for US prisons, given the low pay, poor benefits, and horrendous working conditions.

But the increased risk of Covid-19 for people working there has further exacerbated the problem.

On an average, US prisons currently host some 650,000 detainees every day and they also include more than 220,000 full-time jail staff, who commute back and forth from their homes.