Trending Topics

Pa. warden blames Family and Medical Leave Act for driving up OT

The Lackawanna County Prison warden attributes a spike in overtime to the high number of COs approved for leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act

pawarden.jpg

Robert McMillan, the new warden of the Lackawanna County Prison, at the Lackawanna County Commissioners’ meeting Wednesday.

Photo Michael J. Mullen / Staff Photographer

By David Singleton
The Times-Tribune

LACKAWANNA COUNTY, Pa. — Overtime at the Lackawanna County Prison so far in 2015 is running 2 1/2 times last year’s pace, an increase the warden attributes in part to the high number of correctional officers approved for leave under the federal Family and Medical Leave Act.

Figures presented to the county prison board Wed-nesday show overtime through the first three pay periods of the year stood at $297,432. During the comparable period in 2014, the prison had overtime of $131,703.

Warden Robert McMillan said FMLA leave is contributing to the expense because the prison must bring in other correctional officers on overtime to cover the shifts.

“With the FMLA as high as it is, we’re replacing staff constantly,” he told the board.

As of Wednesday, 40 officers, or 23 percent of the jail’s 174 uniformed staff members, have been approved for FMLA, according to the warden’s report. That includes 37 officers on intermittent leave and three others on full-time leave.

“Some FMLA users now have restrictions that state they can only work eight hours a day, and this is becoming a staffing issue,” the warden said.

Enacted in 1993 to protect workers’ jobs if they become ill, FMLA allows employees to take up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave for specific family or medical reasons. The leave can be taken as a continuous block of time or used intermittently as necessary for recurring medical appointments or chronic conditions such as migraine headaches.

Board member Gary DiBileo, the county controller, citing a 2007 human resources survey that found an average workplace FMLA rate nationally of 8 percent, said the 23 percent rate at the prison seems “very high.”

He told the warden he was concerned that because of the high FMLA use at the jail, more employees there may need the leave because of the long hours they have to work.

Commissioner Corey O’Brien said while individuals are entitled to leave, it has become a significant issue at the jail and one the prison and the administration “are reviewing to determine if there is any fraud within the system.”

“There are good, professional corrections officers who are being put in the position that they have to work these incredible shifts due to the fact we have a higher than average FMLA number, and that is a problem,” he said.

RECOMMENDED FOR YOU