A National Guard member approaches a driver of a truck with New York license plates at a rest stop. March, 2020.
© David DelPoio/The Providence Journal via Imagn Content Services, LLC
(Albany, NY) – State prison guards have been ordered back to work in New York, after their union enacted a strike that was deemed illegal. As a result of the strike, Governor Kathy Hochul had deployed 3,500 National Guard members to several state prisons. Her executive order also grants additional overtime to other guards — who have chosen to stay on the job.
As of midweek, around 30 state prisons had guards walking the picket line. Some had to cancel inmate visitations. Governor Hochul ordered her team to continue talks with the prison guard’s union. The current contract expires in March.
Retired correctional officer Ed Ventre spoke to CBS channel 6 news in Albany and told them the prison guards, “just want better working conditions. Money isn’t even, it’s not even an issue.” Informational sessions laying out potential issues to negotiate are ongoing — mediation is set to start on Tuesday.
