Lags mock prison ciggie WHAT Chuggers plead for staff to ease crisis
PRISON chiefs are battling to solve a staff crisis by hiring “chuggers” to stand in High Streets and beg passers-by to be jail guards. The recruiters, likened to charity muggers, flag down shoppers while wearing white jackets with a picture of a prisoner across the back by the slogan: “Is it in you to be a prison officer?” The corporate windcheaters carry the logo of the National Offender Management Service, which oversees prisons. Chuggers have become notorious for accosting shoppers to make pushy demands for donations. This is believed to be the first time the Prison Service has tried to recruit in this way and comes as jails face a nationwide staffing crisis.
Desperate
Last November the Government announced plans to hire 2,500 extra prison workers and give more powers to governors. Critics said the High Street chugging indicates bosses may still be struggling to fill posts. A gaggle of the recruiters was spotted last week in East Anglia, with jackets advertising: “Prison officer opportunities HMP Norwich.” Three months ago, 60 guards at that prison protested over health and safety concerns which critics have linked to understaffing problems. An image of the chuggers in jackets outside a department store prompted hundreds of criticisms and derision on a Facebook page for past and present prison staff. One former officer wrote: “It’s now official, the prison service has ****ed off to hell in a handcart.” He called the recruitment stunt “a shameful depiction of a once-proud service”. Another critic who said he used to work at HMP Hull added: “What the hell is this? How has working in a respected profession been lowered to this?” A third likened the chuggers’ clothing to the matching polo shirt and cap uniform worn by Domino’s Pizza workers. Others called it “desperate” an “embarassment” and a “new low”. HMP Norwich is home to category B and C prisoners, just below the most serious cons. It was featured in a fly-on-the-wall ITV1 documentary last May. An online advertisment this week said 50 jobs were available at Norwich and its sister prison in Norfolk, HMP Wayland. The minimum salary was listed as £20,751 for a 37-hour week, with 25 days leave plus bank holidays, a choice of two pensions and a childcare voucher scheme. A blurb says successful candidates need “selfconfidence, personal integrity and emotional intelligence”.