Winneshiek County Supervisors are taking steps to counteract a shortage of jailers

Winneshiek County has been having problems with not being able to hire enough jailers to staff the County Jail.  There are currently 12 full-time jailers working at the county facility--four fewer than would be ideal.  As a result, existing jailers have been working overtime to cover all the shifts.

On Monday Winneshiek County Supervisors approved several measures aimed at improving the situation.  First of all, the starting wage for a jailer, which has been $15.06 an hour, will now be increased to $18.00 an hour.  Supervisor Dean Thompson noted that some convenience stores offer $15/hour to start--and the work is less demanding than guarding prisoners.

Supervisors also gave Sheriff Dan Marx the leeway to pay a fully qualified applicant more than $18.00 an hour to start, if he felt they deserved the higher pay.

Next, supervisors increased the top pay rate from $18.67 an hour to $22.30 an hour.

Finally, existing jailers who have had to work overtime and haven't been able to use their existing vacation time will have the option of taking a cash payment instead of taking the time off.

With the new incentives, the Sheriff's Office is in the process of hiring one additional jailer and might have another person interested in the job.