Georgia’s prisons have 2,600 correctional officer positions unfilled. That’s 49% vacancy at the worst facilities. Officers work mandatory 16-hour shifts. Gangs control entire housing units where no staff exist to supervise. Violence surges—100+ homicides in 2024—while the people supposed to prevent it are too few, too exhausted, or simply absent. Georgia knows staffing has collapsed. It refuses to fix the conditions driving officers away. 1
The Staffing Crisis
Georgia can’t keep correctional officers:
- 44% of required positions are actually filled
- 80% vacancy at Valdosta State Prison
- Only 350 behavioral health workers for 50,250 inmates (1:134 ratio)
- 14-week hiring process eliminates 33% of applicants
The few officers who remain face impossible conditions. Many quit within months.
What Happens Without Staff
When officers disappear, gangs fill the vacuum:
- 24 homicides reported in 2020
- 100+ homicides in 2024—violence has only increased
- Nearly half of deaths lacked proper documentation—no one present to record them
- Gangs control housing units where supervision doesn’t exist
The DOJ found Georgia fails to protect prisoners from violence. Understaffing is how that failure happens. 2
The Exhausted Officers Who Remain
Staff who don’t quit face conditions that guarantee burnout:
- Mandatory 16-hour shifts — no choice when no one else shows up
- 82-hour work weeks reported at understaffed facilities
- Security lapses — doors left unlocked, surveillance unwatched
- 53.4% PTSD rate — more than three times other law enforcement
Exhausted officers make dangerous mistakes. High turnover means constant inexperienced staff—easier for gangs to manipulate.
Programs That Disappear
When staffing drops below 30%, facilities cancel:
- Medical care — appointments delayed indefinitely
- Mental health services — wait times exceed six months
- Education programs — vocational training stops
- Addiction counseling — recovery programs interrupted
Without programs, inmates have nothing but unstructured time. Violence fills the void.
Why Officers Leave
Georgia’s starting salary of $44,044 falls below neighboring states:
- Alabama — $48,500
- South Carolina — $51,200
- North Carolina sergeants — $65,000 (Georgia: $50,000)
Beyond pay, officers face:
- Outdated facilities — 78% need emergency lock repairs
- Broken radio systems — 68% of safety complaints
- Manual cell checks — add 2 hours to each shift due to broken systems
- Inadequate training — crisis intervention and gang management skipped
Officers can earn more in safer jobs. So they leave.
What Would Help
Georgia has allocated $600 million for corrections—but most goes to temporary fixes rather than systemic change. Real solutions require:
- Competitive pay — match neighboring states
- Mental health support — for officers facing trauma
- Modern infrastructure — working security systems
- Adequate training — including gang management and de-escalation
- Faster hiring — 14 weeks is too long
Until working conditions improve, officers will keep leaving—and inmates will keep dying.
Take Action
Use Impact Justice AI to send advocacy emails demanding adequate prison staffing. The free tool crafts personalized messages to Georgia lawmakers—no experience required.
Demand:
- Competitive pay for correctional staff
- Adequate staffing at all facilities
- Modern security infrastructure
- Mental health support for officers
Further Reading
- Forced Criminality: Inside Georgia’s Prison Violence Factory
- $700 Million More—And Nothing to Show for It
- GPS Informational Resources
- Pathways to Success
About Georgia Prisoners’ Speak (GPS)
Georgia Prisoners’ Speak (GPS) is a nonprofit investigative newsroom built in partnership with incarcerated reporters, families, advocates, and data analysts. Operating independently from the Georgia Department of Corrections, GPS documents the truth the state refuses to acknowledge: extreme violence, fatal medical neglect, gang-controlled dorms, collapsed staffing, fraudulent reporting practices, and unconstitutional conditions across Georgia’s prisons.
Through confidential reporting channels, secure communication, evidence verification, public-records requests, legislative research, and professional investigative standards, GPS provides the transparency the system lacks. Our mission is to expose abuses, protect incarcerated people, support families, and push Georgia toward meaningful reform based on human rights, evidence, and public accountability.
Every article is part of a larger fight — to end the silence, reveal the truth, and demand justice.
