LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Correctional officers at the Nevada Department of Corrections will be getting a significant pay raise. The increase was approved through the passing of Assembly Bill 522. Republican Governor Joe Lombardo signed off on the bill for the state’s budget on Thursday.
“This is by far the biggest raise that NDOC has ever experienced for officers, so we’re hopeful that will at least abate the staffing crisis and start to get us back to where it needs to be,” said Paul Lunkwitz, President of the Fraternal Order of Police Nevada C.O. Lodge 21.
There is a severe shortage of correctional officers in Nevada. Prisons are frequently on lockdown because of the shortage. There has been escalating violence against officers and between inmates.
The Department of Corrections has had a tough time keeping and attracting potential officers due to the pay rate, which has not been competitive with neighboring law enforcement agencies.
Correctional officers will receive a 23 percent raise in July and an additional four percent in July of 2024, according to Lunkwitz.
Lunkwitz said he is grateful that the governor and legislators worked out the deal. He is hoping that Assembly Bill 498 will also pass, which would reduce the amount of money pulled from correctional officers’ paychecks for the state pension program, also known as PERS.
