DOVER- Delaware prison guards are considering taking their issues with state prison officials to the national level.
John Brady, the lawyer for the Correctional Officers Association of Delaware said a national labor board may be able to solve some of their problems. He says workers are concerned about being forced to work overtime. Brady said another major issue is sick leave. He said some institutions are requiring workers to provide more details than the law requires.
"Now, in some institutions, they want to know the specific reasons of why a person was excused from work, and that's personnel information provided under HIPPA, and members are not getting their sick time because they're not providing that," Brady said.
Beth Welch, a spokesperson for the Delaware Department of Correction said the DOC has the right to force overtime under their interim contract. And she said it is necessary for DOC officials to know exactly why a worker is calling out.
"We need to understand exactly the nature of the illness so that if he can come in, we can perhaps assign him to another area or if the illness is too serious, that would preclude him from working," Welch said.
DOC and state officials are working to meet a Nov. 15 deadline. That is when lawmakers want to see progress on their negotiations.
