CCA Honors Employees During National Correctional Professionals Week
NASHVILLE – In honor of National Correctional Professionals Week, August 11-15, 2008, Corrections Corporation of America CEO John Ferguson and President Damon Hininger today saluted CCA’s dedicated cross-country team of employees whose work in company owned and operated prisons, jails and detention centers helps CCA fulfill its vision to be the “best full-service adult corrections system in America.”
As CCA continues its year-long celebration of its 25th anniversary, honoring its work force of more than 17,000 employees is especially timely. These correctional professionals serve in a variety of specialties, such as health services, academic and vocational education, addictions treatment, inmate programs, maintenance, security, management and administration.
“Our employees are our base, our foundation. I could not be more proud of our team of dedicated professionals – the chaplains, teachers, counselors, security experts, nurses and many others – who work diligently to keep our facilities safe and secure and our offender care strong and innovative,” Ferguson said. “The men and women of CCA perform an invaluable public service and serve the more than 75,000 offenders in our care with great pride and professionalism.”
“As someone who started with CCA as a frontline correctional officer, I know and appreciate firsthand the drive, commitment and pride required to protect and serve our communities, colleagues and the offenders in our care each day,” added Hininger.
During this special recognition week, many CCA facilities are hosting festivities for employees and their families. Saguaro Correctional Center in Eloy, Ariz., for example, is hosting a weeklong series of ice cream, pizza and hamburger parties for staff, while Willacy County State Jail in Raymondville, Texas, is hosting a swimming party and barbecue for staff and families.
“We try to do something special for our employees every year in honor of National Correctional Professionals Week, and it’s become a tradition that everyone really anticipates with excitement,” said Warden Orlando Perez of Willacy. “This week is an opportunity for staff and families to get together and relax, and for our leadership team to say ‘thank you’ to everyone for a job well done.”
CCA emphasizes recruitment and retention of high caliber correctional professionals through a system that rewards performance. As the company continues to grow, so, too, does its comprehensive suite of advancement options for career-minded individuals, which include continuing education, specialty training and national career mobility.
“Now is an exciting time to be among CCA’s professionals throughout the country who have chosen to make the company their career home,” said Bill Rusak, CCA’s executive vice president and chief human resources officer. “We have established a company culture that believes in promoting from within – investing in the development of our dedicated professionals, as they realize their occupational dreams.”
CCA employees not only serve their government customers and help ensure the safety of inmates, colleagues and the greater public, they also serve their communities. This year, Corporate Responsibility Officer magazine named CCA among the “100 Best Corporate Citizens” in the U.S. in recognition of, in part, the many philanthropic activities in which CCA’s community-minded employees engage.
Additionally, CCA’s reputation as an employer of choice has been supported by G.I. Jobs magazine, which named the company – whose workforce is approximately 10 percent veteran-based – among the nation’s “Top 50 Most Military-Friendly Employers.”
“As the largest employer in many of the communities where CCA operates, we take our role as a corporate citizen very seriously,” said Ferguson. “Our goal is to build a culture where our employees are proud to wear the CCA uniform every day, not only as members of a local and national CCA team, but also as responsible stewards and respected volunteers in their communities.”
About CCA
CCA is the founder and industry leader of the private corrections management industry, representing the nation’s fifth-largest corrections system, behind the federal government and three states. CCA currently operates 65 facilities, including 42 that are company-owned, with a total design capacity of approximately 81,000 beds in 19 states and the District of Columbia, with more than 17,000 employees who provide comprehensive educational, vocational, therapeutic and addictions treatment programs intended to prepare inmates for successful re-integration with society.