Hard reality of being a prison officer

ONCE again overtime earnings of prison officers are bandied about the media, and the usual comparisons are made to other employees, giving the reader the impression that we are on a gravy train of great proportions.

Let us look at the facts behind the figures.

Last year, prison officers were ordered to work overtime on more than 38,000 occasions. This means that we are told (usually at short notice) that we have to report for duty on our day off. If we fail to report we will be disciplined.