By C1 Staff
HONOLULU, Hawaii — Prison system officials in Hawaii are hoping to stymie an overwhelming number of sick leave calls by hiring more people and looking into a video visitation system.
According to KITV, public safety director Ted Sakai says 136 vacancies must be filled, but that the department was also closely looking at reasons behind sick leave calls.
“We know there are some days where the sick leave call ins tend to be very high and we know what they are – Super Bowl, New Year’s, things like that,” he said, adding that they knew that not all call ins were false.
Job stress and a hostile environment have led the department to explore a wellness program for corrections officers, to help them deal with health issues.
Sakai also said that the option of a video visitation system, while they are looking into it, will not be available until the buildings undergo expensive modernization and re-wiring.