By By Sheila Blackmon/The Meridian Star
Dec. 5, 2000
Lauderdale supervisors are scheduled to meet this week with Mississippi State University officials to work out the kinks in a recommendation to raise county employees' salaries.
The raises, up to 14 percent for long-time employees, could come as early as January.
A salary study completed earlier this year by an MSU team from Stennis Institute said employees who have more years in service should receive bigger raises.
Smith said supervisors met with MSU officials last week but want to make some adjustments before they pass salary recommendations.
He asked Lauderdale County Sheriff Billy Sollie several questions at the supervisors' regular meeting Monday about the high turnover rate among corrections officers at the Lauderdale County Correctional Facility.
Smith wanted to know how many corrections officers had resigned. He asked if they changed careers or if they accepted jobs at other correctional facilities. He wanted to know how stressful their jobs are. He said the turnover rate is higher than it was at the jail's old location on top of the courthouse.
Sollie said the turnover rate is not higher because there are more inmates at the new jail meaning more corrections officers must be employed.
He said Lauderdale County's turnover rate is comparable to that of the East Mississippi Correctional Facility in Lost Gap. He said the Kemper-Neshoba Regional Correctional Facility in DeKalb has been open about a month and has lost corrections officers already.
Sheila Blackmon is a staff writer for The Meridian Star. E-mail her at sblackmon@meridianstar.com.