PUEBLO, Colo.—A state employees union has disputed suggestions that 4,000 Department of Corrections workers are overpaid, saying they handle prisoners that require higher security and more training.

A July 19 letter signed by 15 Senate Republican lawmakers said the state's latest salary plan goes too far when it suggests state corrections workers be paid more money at a time when private prison workers are paid less.

The letter cites a recent study showing state prison employees average $51,000 a year while private prison staffers average $34,500. It also says state corrections employees have other benefits, including retirement, overtime and access to government vehicles, the Pueblo Chieftain reported Thursday (http://tinyurl.com/mgmh8sv).

The annual salary survey sets the pay scale for state workers based on comparisons to a list of factors, including private employers.

"We would request that all of these factors be considered and corrected prior to the release of the Aug. 1, 2013, salary survey," the GOP lawmakers stipulated in their letter.

Among those who signed were Sens. Kevin Grantham, R-Canon City, and Larry Crowder, R-Alamosa.

"That letter was for information purposes only," Crowder said. "No one is talking about decreasing anyone's salary. But we have to be the stewards of the public's money. This is something we might consider in making future hires.



Senate Democrats on the Joint Budget Committee, which sets the state's spending priorities, fired back, saying state corrections workers guard maximum- security prisoners while private prisons only handle lower security inmates. They called the salary dispute a safety issue, after the deaths of several state prison workers in the past decade.

State Sen. Angela Giron, D-Pueblo, said she was surprised by the GOP letter.

"As we've tragically seen, these officers put their lives on the line in our prisons," she said. "I don't know why the Senate Republicans want them working for lower pay."



Republican Letter on Prison Salaries: http://tinyurl.com/llupgwv


Information from: The Pueblo Chieftain, http://www.chieftain.com