A New York prison guard strike is entering its third day, and Gov. Kathy Hochul is threatening to deploy National Guard troops to restore order.
The governor said in a statement Tuesday if the strike does not end, she is preparing to send in the National Guard and take disciplinary action. She is also looking into legal recourse, like the state’s Taylor law, which compels employees to return to work.
“The illegal and unlawful actions being taken by a number of correction officers must end immediately. We will not allow these individuals to jeopardize the safety of their colleagues, incarcerated people, and the residents of communities surrounding our correctional facilities,” Hochul said in a statement Tuesday. “I have directed my Administration to meet with union leadership to resolve this situation and have also ordered the National Guard be mobilized to secure our correctional facilities in the event it is not resolved by tomorrow. Correction officers do difficult work under challenging circumstances, and I have consistently fought for them to have better pay and working conditions and will continue to do so.”
Some staff have reportedly refused to show up for their shifts at 25 of the state’s 42 prisons. State and union leaders agree the strike is in violation of the rules for state employees.
The state corrections officer union says its “members’ backs are against the wall.” They are demanding higher pay, stricter security checks for prison visitors and a rollback on prison reforms, including those that limit solitary confinement.
Hochul’s statement outlined several ways her office has worked to improve salaries, benefits and working conditions for corrections officers, as well as increase protections with body scanners and reducing contraband. She also said her office is working to improve recruitment and hire more officers.
“Earlier today we met with NYSCOPBA President Summers and his Executive Board to discuss a path forward to returning all facilities to normal operations and ending this illegal strike. The safety and security of the staff and incarcerated population is paramount to me. I value the hard work and commitment of the men and women at DOCCS who have had to sacrifice time with their families due to the current staffing shortage. However, this illegal job action involving NYSCOPBA members is causing irreparable harm to the operations of the department and jeopardizing the safety and security of their co-workers within these facilities,” Department of Corrections Commissioner Daniel F. Martuscello III said in a statement, going on to say, “I am urging all those on strike to end this job action.”
The strike also comes after video released in January showed corrections officers beating 43-year-old Robert Brooks Sr. as he was handcuffed at the Marcy Correctional Facility in Oneida County. His death was later ruled a homicide, and the governor called for the firing of more than a dozen prison staffers.
“Mr. Brooks and his family did not deserve this,” Hochul said after visiting the prison, where she named a new superintendent and vowed to expedite $400 million for new cameras across the facility.
So far, 15 officers and two nurses have been suspended without pay, and at least one officer quit. CBS News New York learned criminal charges against some of those involved could be announced as early as Wednesday.
