ABSTRACT
When this research began, there were 359 correction officers at Auburn. Of these, approximately 290 were on active assignments on any given day, the remainder being on vacation or having regular days off. The men work eight-hour shifts, beginning at 6:50, 7:10,8:00, 9:00 and 10:00 a.m. and at 3:00 and 11:00 p.m. The officers are supervised by 19 sergeants and seven lieutenants. The supervisors report to two captains, and the entire custodial staff is the responsibility of the institution’s deputy superintendent for security. Officer work assignments are often self-selected, in that officers with sufficient experience are able to “bid” on jobs as they become vacant. (This bidding system was put into effect in 1970. Prior to 1970, officers were assigned work locations by administrative personnel.)
All but three of the officers at Auburn belong to the correction officers’ union, which represents them and correction officers throughout the state in contract negotiations, labor management meetings and in grievances against the local correctional administration and the state. The Auburn chapter is generally considered one of the more militant chapters of those operating in New York State’s correctional institutions, having engaged in picketing activities designed to gain public recognition for their concerns and, in 1970, holding a two-day strike in violation of state law prohibiting public employee strikes. Officers at Auburn dress in standardized nonmilitary apparel. They wear blazers during months appropriate to the weather, or jackets, making them look like “bus drivers.” They carry no paraphernalia associated with police work such as night sticks, guns or handcuffs. They enter the institution without the trappings usually associated with police-style authority.
