Do Not Waste
I believe that ways should be found to use retired corrections staff to help mentor and teach new staff. Not tapping into the knowledge and experience of the retired guys is a great loss. Even if they only told war stories, that would give the new people an insight into how certain situations could or should be handled.
Oh yes, I know that some staff will say that they can’t wait to get away and never come back to corrections. Oftentimes, however, they are bored out of their skulls within six months. Their spouses are wishing their partners were doing something other than looking over their shoulder all the time. I believe this is something that needs to be addressed.
When I was a young green Officer I listened to everything that the old timers wanted to tell me. Yes, I sometimes needed to take it with 50lbs. of salt, but even then I could learn something about the Officer who was talking to me.
It is sad when we dedicate a big part of our life to a cause and then walk away and our knowledge is wasted.
I’m glad I found something to do with my experience with prisons. Of course there will always be some retired staff who doesn’t want to talk about work. However, I wonder whether they don’t also think back on the days they used to walk the line.
The human resource is available. The next step is for decisions to be made whether to make use of it, and if so, how.
Take care,
The Old Screw
|
Copyright © 2004,
DesertWaters.com. All Rights Reserved. No reproduction allowed. |