MARCY, N.Y. -- When Kelly Jones began working at the Central New York Psychiatric Center, she knew her job could be dangerous.

"You knew that the possibility was there that, at some point during the day, something bad could happen," said Jones.

Her first injury occurred when a patient grabbed her hair and pulled her to the ground, seriously injuring her neck.

"Then I've just had repeated injuries from inmate assaults from throughout the years, to my back, my hip, my shoulder, repeatedly to my neck," she said.

Injuries like this lead to surgery and force an employee to be out of work for weeks, if not months. Jones was forced to retire because of her injuries.

"The issue is that the state just wants these employees back, even sometimes when they're not fully healed, because they've gotten into such a terrible cycle of overtime and injury," said Jim Mills, a current CNY Psychiatric Center employee.

Union leaders say, on average, at least one safety security officer at psychiatric facilities is assaulted every day, and in those cases, patients are never charged. In prisons, union officials say assaults against correctional officers are up 55 percent this year.
 
"More people are leaving in ambulances from work than ever. We find it hard to believe that the state can turn a blind eye to their own employees when they're being injured," said John Harmon, NYSCOPBA's law enforcement vice president.
 
At Wednesday's informational picket, union members say there needs to be more safety training available. They're also calling on government leaders to pass legislation which would protect correctional facility employees.
 
"Until they pick up the game and create things that make us safer, this job's not going to be safe, the state's not going to be safe, the community's not going to be safe," said Harmon.
 
Union leaders say they fear if changes aren't made soon, security or corrections officers could die.
 
Dozens of correctional officers and secure hospital treatment assistants from facilities across the Mohawk Valley participated in Wednesday's event. This is the seventh informational picket NYSCOPBA has held in the past two months.