PA. Eliminating 870 Prison Jobs With Less Than 6 Months Notice to the Employees (2 Prisons Closing)

[JPZenger]

http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/local/westmoreland/delay-sought-as-state-readies-to-close-prisons-greensburg-and-cambria-670799/

Two prisons are being closed, with less than 6 months notice to the state employees. One involves 500 jobs in an isolated small town near Johnstown, where there are some of the highest employment rates in the State and few other major employers.

Without any advance notice of the closing, some employees had recently bought homes near their jobs. Some employees had missed opportunities to transfer to openings in other prisons, because they had no idea their jobs would disappear.

I watched a recent Senate hearing on this matter. The Corbett Administration officials made a presentation, and then ran out of the room, before any of the union representatives or local public officials had a chance to make their remarks. Meanwhile, Senator Eichelberger said that it made sense that Corbett didn't provide more notice, because it just would have given the unions more time to complain.

By the way, these job eliminations are not the result of decreasing prison populations. They mainly result from the completion of a new prison near State College. In other words, the State officials knew they would be closing down 2 prisons as they were replaced by the new one - but they didn't tell the employees so they could plan ahead and look for other job opportunities.

[appleannie1]

1. And our prisons are overcrowded. Makes no sense at all. But then

CoreButt usually does not make sense.

[madrchsod]

2. illinois just closed several prisons

the prisons that are still open are even more over crowded and more dangerous. i was at meeting with several guards and they are very pissed off and very focused on who to blame. the blame lays with our state government for refusing to fund the pension and borrowing from it.

[blue neen]

3. Everything Corbett does is sneaky.

Last edited Mon Jan 28, 2013, 08:08 AM - Edit history (1)

Cutting jobs without notice by closing state prisons, outsourcing the lottery to Great Britain, thereby eliminating more jobs. Take your pick!

Now, he's trying to gerrymander our electoral votes. Corbett and the rest of the Republicans are sore losers.

Well, guess what, Corbett and his buddies are not only going to be sore losers, they are going to be BIG losers in 2014.

That day can't be here soon enough.

[Pat Riot]

4. Call me crazy

It's been said of me before that I'm paranoid and prone to conspiracy theories, but just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get me!
Anyway, the idea that this new prison may be privatized won't leave my head. Could Corbett be trying to make something up to wealthy Republican donors who no longer have as much revenue from Penn State football and Second Mile funding?