Consider:
* Change the years to retire, 32 years is way too long to work in this field.
* Stiffer penalties for crimes committed against Correction Officers.
* Classify, Corrections as a branch of law enforcement.
* Ensure, Correction Officers get better equipment, training, treatment, and care.
* Recognize, PTSD in Corrections.
Bills/Laws need to be passed for the field of Corrections.
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To Whom It May Concern:
The reason why I am contacting you is that Correctional Officers in Ohio must work (32) years to retire.  Which I find unacceptable for what they endure daily.  We aren’t labeled as Law Enforcement even though we should be.
Below are some glaring facts regarding Correctional Officers:
·         3.5% of all assaults in prisons and jails are committed by inmates against staff. A CO's 58th birthday, on average, is their last. A CO will be seriously assaulted at least twice in a 20-year career. On average a CO will live only 18 months after retirement.
·         Correctional employees experience some of the highest rates of mental illness, sleep disorders, and physical health issues of all U.S. workers.
·         Correctional officers face constant risk of being assaulted or maimed by inmates turning common objects into unconventional weapons. These materials include broken glass, locks, safety razors, and toiletries. The greatest threat comes from objects sharpened to become weapons, according to a research report submitted to the U.S. Justice Department in November 2007. Toothbrushes, for example, can be sharpened for stabbing, or reshaped to hold metal blades. Officers must remain constantly vigilant for such threats, which boosts their physical and mental stress.
·         Custodial environments seesaw between lengthy periods of boredom, isolation, and physical danger. Correctional officers will disassociate themselves emotionally from their surroundings to cope with these extremes. However, this mindset also leaves officers vulnerable to job burnout, according to an article posted on the corrections.com website. Officers focus on getting through shifts without incident but no longer care about what they're doing. Eventually, the officer loses the ability to empathize with those around him, a phenomenon that's commonly labeled as "compassion fatigue."
·         Correctional officers suffer the second highest mortality rate of any occupation, according to statistics posted by the Maine Department of Public Safety. Due to the job's unrelenting physical and psychological stresses, the average correctional officer lives just 18 months after retirement. A study of retired correctional and law enforcement personnel in Florida also found similar disparities between both groups of officers and the general population. Florida residents enjoyed an average lifespan of 74.2 years, or 12 years longer than correctional and police officers.
Most Correctional Officers have no equipment to defend themselves or others.
I hope after reading this you consider doing something in the fine State of Ohio for these brave men and women.
Warm regards,
 
Ohio Corrections Officers