ATTICA, N.Y. — New York Gov. Kathy Hochul announced on Thursday evening that an agreement has been reached to resolve a wildcat strike that has disrupted the state’s prison system for over a week.
Hochul stated that the state and the union representing the striking correctional workers have come to binding terms following four days of mediation. Despite coming to an agreement, this has not stopped corrections officers on the picket line.
“We need national intervention,” Jennifer Berry, the wife of an Attica Correctional Facility correctional officer, said. “We really do. The state is not protecting our officers. They're not protecting our families. They're not protecting the moms and dads of the children that they go home to every single day. And enough's enough.”
Berry is vocalizing her husband's concerns as hundreds of officers fear their job security when communicating with the media. However, officials say the workers must return to work to avoid being disciplined for striking.
“They are threatening to take away the family's health insurance,” Berry said. “They're threatening to terminate them. They're threatening to have them arrested. It never ends.”
It's bringing others in the community to stand up in solidarity with the wildcat strike. On Saturday, nearby residents lined up their cars outside of the correctional facility, honking their horns, waving their flags and cheering on those who are at the picket line for another day.
“This community, you know, they experienced the riot in Attica in 1971,” Berry said. “They also went through a strike in 1979. They know what this place means. This offers a lot of jobs. My husband works here. His dad worked here. His uncle worked here. His grandfather was in the riot. They're our friends, our family [and] our neighbors. And this is what we do.”
Protestors have found this issue to not only directly impact the officers inside the facility, but even their loved ones outside of it, bringing two children, Preslee and Macey, in the cold weather to support their correction officer father.
“I don't think they're making any progress right now, and they will not leave until something's changed,” Preslee and Macey said. “And I definitely think it would help if our governor came to one of these facilities to see what it's really like in these jails. Because behind the walls, there's definitely a lot of coverage of what our COs and parents and staff are doing.”
The deal reached between the Department of Corrections and the union calls for all employees to return to work on their assigned schedule by Saturday, but the terms will not go into effect until all employees return to work.
If these conditions are met, the temporary suspension of programming elements of the HALT Act will continue for 90 days with an evaluation by DOCCS after 30 days to determine if reinstating those elements would create a “safety issue” on a facility-by-facility basis. The agreement shared by Hochul aims to tackle issues related to staffing shortages and safety, featuring several important concessions, including a 90-day suspension of certain parts of the HALT Act and a temporary increase in overtime compensation. However, protestors say, this is not enough.
“They're going to hold the line until they get what they want,” Berry said. “Because honestly, the governor's offer was a complete slap in the face. And now they're even more irate.”
Groups reconvened officers at 5:30 a.m. to hold the line until a workable solution is found.
“The officers will not leave,” Berry said. “They are banned together. They're stronger than ever today because of that offer. So they’re not going anywhere.”
