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WNIJ's summary of news items around our state.

Illinois Prison Director: Union Contracts Are The Problem

flickr user / Michael Coghlan "Prison Bars" (CC BY-SA 2.0)

The new director of Illinois prisons says union contracts are the source of many problems within the state Department of Corrections. 

Prisons chief Donald Stolworthy wrote in a memo to Gov. Bruce Rauner that union contracts contribute to “many of the ills within the system.” That includes personnel costs and management qualifications. 

In documents, Stolworthy says overtime costs skyrocketed in recent years. Union spokesman Anders Lindall says overtime problems result from a lack of staff.

Stolworthy says a lack of newer technology in the system adds to costs and wastes staff hours. He will complete an action plan to fix the corrections department in the next few weeks. 

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