For Women Staff
It seems that female corrections staff has at
least three strikes against them before they even start their first shift. It
is sad to say that some of these strikes are from fellow staff. For example,
passes are made. If you say "No, I’m married"—strike 1. If you say "Yes", and
go out, you’re labeled a slut—strike 2. If you’re not married and still say
"no," then you’re labeled frigid or a lesbian—strike 3.
Well, let me tell you this is wrong and always has been.
I was working in corrections at Kansas State Penitentiary when the first
female staff came on duty. They did a good job even though at first they
didn’t have to work all posts. There were a few, my present wife included, who
would work anywhere and when told "no" would ask, "Why not?" My wife is only
5’2" but does not know what "back down" means if fellow staff is in trouble.
I’ve had the honor to work with several female staff of this caliber.
Yes, a lot of the female staff could not handle Corrections. The thing though
is, there were male Corrections Officers who couldn’t handle it either.
The one thing I did notice, and it still applies today, is that if the female
staff carried themselves professionally, they got along better. They had less
hassles than the ones who flirted, or the ones who tried to use their female
status to get out of things, or to get male staff to do their jobs. It was a
privilege to work with those who acted professionally, and there are some of
them I would as soon have watching my back as some male Officers.
There always has been and always will be resentment from some male staff
regarding the women officers. Yes, even the Old Screw had to make some
adjustments. What I have to say to the guys is, Get over it! Women staff
are here to stay!
Some male staff and even some female staff are waiting for female staff to
mess up, to do something wrong. The day a new female walks in the facility,
odds are given as to how long it will be before a co-worker seduces her or
some inmate gets through to her. Does this sound cold and hard? Yes, it does,
and yes, it is. Thank goodness, not all staff is that way. Remember: there are
odds on new male staff too. It is just that female staff gets the most
attention.
If just one female staff out of a hundred fall by the way, it makes it so much
harder for the rest who are professionals.
It is sad when inmates get a female staff caught up in some kind of game.
Don’t think they won’t try. They will be the kindest, most polite and caring
person you’ve ever seen. They can spot a lonely or troubled female staff a
mile away and have all the time in the world to groom them, to work on them.
Some inmates will take full advantage of staff’s loneliness or low
self-esteem. Family troubles are an open door for the inmates, because staff
let their guard down or are looking for comfort.
Hey, these guys will sometimes do anything to get out of a write-up or to
score brownie points. Or they themselves are lonely. It usually starts off
small.
Staff, male and female, have a bad tendency sometimes to want to talk to
someone about things they don’t want coworkers to know about, such as problems
at home, husbands or boyfriends not understanding why they work in
Corrections. If they start doing that with inmates—watch out! Trouble won’t be
far behind!
It is the responsibility of sergeants and other higher ranking staff to set an
example for their staff. It does no good to tell female staff to watch out for
this or that inmate because they have already taken female staff down. The
term is "supervise," and no, it will not always work. You will lose some staff
no matter what. It is a fatal attraction to some female staff, and nothing you
do will make a bit of difference.
I have seen several female staff who got caught up in inmate games. What
female staff does not realize is that they are getting set up. There were
times that the inmate was sitting in the facility investigator’s office when
he called a female staff at home or on her cell phone (she gave him the
numbers) and asked for her to bring in certain items.
Another setup is he (the inmate) needs money. He has gambling debts, needs a
TV, anything that will make the female staff worry about his safety or his
happiness. So she gives him money.
The worst game is the love/sex game. Oh, he’s so in love with her, he’s never
met anyone as kind and loving as her. He can’t live without her, until: (1)
they get caught and then "you used your position and took advantage of me;"
(2) she wakes up and says "no" and has to deal with his threats and blackmail;
or (3) other inmates hear him bragging about her and they ask her for a
session too. (Don’t think that hasn’t happened.)
The worst scenario may be when other staff push coworkers away from being part
of the group through words or actions. More than once I have heard from female
staff that, "The inmates treat me better than most staff." When that’s what
they experience, it may not be long before they turn to inmates for
companionship and comfort.
Training, training, and more training helps. Supervisors who are approachable
to their staff also help. When senior staff notices problems, they can
sometimes stop them by paying attention to troubled staff and talking with
them.
Both female and male staff must know that they are not alone in this, and that
fellow staff cares. I can only tell you that Desert Waters’ staff and the Old
Screw do care. We would rather have a hundred calls from staff just wanting to
talk and get something off their chest than hear of one set-up staff.
Take
Care,
The Old Screw
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