Broome County Hires Dozens of Correction Officers for Jail

A staffing crisis at the Broome County Jail is about to ease with the hiring of about 30 correction officers.

The town of Dickinson facility has been down about 40 correction officers in recent months.

Sheriff Fred Akshar on Tuesday said the department has hired 29 people who will start next Monday.

Akshar told WNBF News the new correction officers class will be the largest for Broome County in recent history. He said it's a diverse group that includes seven women. He said two additional recruit interviews are scheduled.

Akshar credits recruitment director Charles Woody Jr. for working to make people aware of the positions available with the sheriff's office. Woody previously had served as the Binghamton police department's director of recruiting and community outreach.

Akshar said the sheriff's office was able to use an unconventional approach to addressing the need to fill positions at the jail. He noted "only a couple" of the new recruits "came from an established Civil Service list." He said the hiring is being done in a "provisional capacity" in conjunction with the county personnel department.

The sheriff said the new recruits will go through a five-week field training program. After they've completed that process, he said they'll be able to work in a post on a regular basis.

In the fall, the sheriff's office will host a corrections academy to provide the formal training for the newly-hired employees.

Broome County Sheriff Fred Akshar during a radio interview on January 4, 2023. (Photo: Bob Joseph/WNBF News)

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Contact WNBF News reporter Bob Joseph: bob@wnbf.com or (607) 545-2250. For breaking news and updates on developing stories, follow @BinghamtonNow on Twitter.

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