Politics & Government
St. Louis County Government:
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, MO (November 17, 2021) - County Executive Dr. Sam Page on Wednesday welcomed the U S Department of Labor to the Justic ...
November 17, 2021
ST. LOUIS COUNTY, MO (November 17, 2021) - County Executive Dr. Sam Page on Wednesday welcomed the U S Department of Labor to the Justice Center to highlight a new apprenticeship program for corrections officers.
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The County Executive was joined by the first class of new corrections officers eligible for the apprenticeship program as well as Scott Anders, Acting Director of Justice Services and Wade Johnson with the Department of Labor.
St. Louis County's Justice Center is the only jail in Missouri to offer this nationally certified apprenticeship program. It provides 2,000 hours of on the job training. New corrections officers who complete the six month probationary period of the apprenticeship training will receive a $500 incentive.
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“At Tuesday night's county council meeting, we heard the urgent pleas from Justice Center staff about the need to hire more corrections officers, Dr. P age said. This program, combined with a raise that we hope will soon be passed by the county council will be important steps in getting the jail fully staffed.
Once a year of training is completed, new corrections officers are eligible for up to 30 hours of college credit in a job related major at a community college. Current corrections officers will also be eligible for these college credits.
“I hope this apprenticeship program entices more people to join our staff, Anders said. This will allow our department to keep pace with advancing technologies and in novations in training while serving as a recruiting tools for new officers.
St. Louis County accepted this funding in late September from the U .S. Department of Labor and the Missouri Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development for financial support to help with the recruitment of corrections officers. The $50,000 will cover the cost of training of 100 new corrections officers.
This week, the Department of Justice Services has 50 people scheduled to interview for open corrections officer positions. Interested applicants can apply for the new apprenticeship program here.
This press release was produced by the St. Louis County Government. The views expressed here are the author’s own.