Private prison maintenance workers on strike over wages, safety concerns

Maintenance workers at a private prison run by CoreCivic in Florence are on strike over wages and safety concerns.

Workers at the Central Arizona Florence Correctional Complex voted to unionize in March despite claims of CoreCivic attempting to thwart the effort.

Seventeen maintenance workers joined the UA Local 469 Plumbers and Pipefitters Union after a vote with the National Labor Relations Board, according to union organizer Chad Jessee.

Since that time, Jessee said the workers have been bargaining for higher wages, and called CoreCivic’s most recent offer “insulting.”

“CoreCivic proposed a 44 cent raise the first year, and 22 cent raises for each of the following two years,” Jessee said regarding negotiations over a new contract. “That’s less than a $1 raise! They haven’t had a raise in ten years and this is what they’re offered.”

The workers currently make just over $22 an hour.

Jessee said the low wages, combined with alleged unsafe working conditions made the offer unacceptable.

Around 20 CACF union members and supporters have been on a picket line outside the prison since Friday, said Jessee.

In response to the strike, CoreCivic spokesperson Ryan Gustin said the company was committed to providing jobs with competitive pay and benefits.

"During recent contract negotiations with the local plumbers and pipefitting union for our maintenance workers at our Central Arizona Florence Correctional Complex (CAFCC), we provided a competitive, opening proposal that was not accepted, and no counter-proposal was provided by the union," Gustin said. "Instead, the union negotiators gave CAFCC notice that it intended to strike, beginning the morning of August 12."

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Reached by phone on the picket line Monday, union member Dave Gossett said he and his colleagues are responsible for maintaining complex systems at the prison that are necessary to maintain safety and security. Gossett has worked for CoreCivic for two years.

“We work on the boilers, kitchen equipment, HVAC, the fire system, all the plumbing,” Gossett said. “When you don’t have working water or HVAC systems, when the toilets are plugged up, it can create a lot of issues with the prisoners. It can create a security issue.”

Gossett said they are asking CoreCivic to pay them the typical industry rate in Florence, which he said was closer to 30 to 35 dollars an hour.

In addition to a wage increase, the workers are asking CoreCivic to address safety issues at the prison. They claim a part of the fire system that pull smoke out of the buildings, the exhaust fans, haven't worked for a year. Gustin said fire suppression systems at CAFCC are fully operational and were last inspected in October 2021.

Jessee said CoreCivic responded to the strike by bringing in workers from out of state. Gustin would only say the company had "taken steps to ensure there are no interruptions in services as we continue to work through these negotiations, and we remain committed to delivering high-quality maintenance services at the facility."

Gossett said workers would stay on the picket line outside the main entrances to the prison until CoreCivic agreed to get back to the bargaining table. Other members of UA Local 469 pledged to support the prison workers “for the weeks to come” if necessary.

According to CoreCivic, CAFCC is designed to hold approximately 4,100 individuals and employs nearly 800 people. CoreCivic contracts with multiple government entities to detain people at the facility including the City of Coolidge, City of Mesa, Gila River, City of Apache Junction, Idaho Department of Corrections, Pascua Yaqui, U.S. Air Force and U.S. Marshals Service.

According to an audit from 2021, CAFCC had an average daily population of 3,572, and the average length of stay at the facility was 108 days.

Have a news tip on Arizona prisons? Reach the reporter at jjenkins@arizonarepublic.com or at 812-243-5582. Follow him on Twitter @JimmyJenkins.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Private prison maintenance workers on strike over wages, safety concerns