Gov. Laura Kelly on Monday brought an to end a nearly six-month state of emergency at the El Dorado Correctional Facility.
The governor announced she was lifting the emergency as staffing levels have improved at the facility, allowing prison workers to return to eight-hour shifts after previously logging 12-hour days.
“There are many people to thank for their support during this emergency, first and foremost our employees,” Kelly said in a statement.
“Under very difficult circumstances, our employees demonstrated their commitment to each other and to the safety of their fellow Kansans.”
Kelly declared the state of emergency in February at the prison — the site of two inmate uprisings since 2017 — as staff at the facility dwindled because of low pay in the face of difficult working conditions.
At the time the state of emergency was declared, there were 95 vacancies at El Dorado. As of July 29, there were 50 vacancies.
The Corrections Department reports that vacancies are down throughout the system. On June 17, there were 342 uniformed vacancies compared to 252 on July 29. On Feb. 11, there were 321 uniformed vacancies.
The governor attributed the reduction in vacancies to the $9 million that she recommended — and the Legislature approved — for boosting wages.
Pay for Kansas corrections officers has grown at a slower rate than Social Security benefits the last 30 years.
The funding increase allows the state to boost starting wages to $18.26 per hour from $15.75.
Corrections officials had warned that they were burning out the prison’s staff during the state of emergency.
They said that El Dorado staff had worked more than 2,000 shifts of 16 hours or longer since the governor declared a state of emergency at the prison on Feb. 12.
A memorandum of understanding between the Kansas Organization of State Employees and the Corrections Department requires a 45-day notice before ending the 12-hour shifts on Oct. 6.
