Office of Juvenile Affairs

PROJECT PURPOSE

Premium pay for Detention Centers - State Wide

EVIDENCE

There are 12 contracted detention centers with a total of 335 licensed beds located throughout the state. COVID-19 issues have resulted in critical shortages in labor to keep the facility open with safe levels of supervision. COVID-19 outbreaks among youth and staff have resulted in increased costs. Other ARPA requests will assist with COVID-19 mitigation (HVAC Filtration Systems and Health Department Provided PPE), but additional funding is needed for incentive pay.

POPULATION DESCRIPTION

There are 12 detention centers throughout the state. These regional centers provide a place to detain youth while waiting for court disposition or placement. Without this funding, communities would be at risk of being unable to find suitable alternatives if detention centers have to close or take beds off-line because of staffing issues. Incentive pay at our other secure facilities have made it possible to compete in the labor market even when there is aggressive competition for employees from other areas and entities.

PERFORMANCE MEASURING

Project performance will be measured by analysis of data from OJA's Juvenile On-line Tracking System (JOLTS). Contractor billing is managed through JOLTS which requires detailed data to be entered in order to receive payment.

ONGOING INVESTMENT AMOUNT

$

ONGOING INVESTMENT DESCRIPTION

None

ONGOING INVESTMENT REQUIRED

Able to continue operation without additional funding from the State of Oklahoma