ASSOCIATED PRESS
Denver Broncos Peyton Manning (18) throws during the first half of the NFL Super Bowl 50 football game Sunday, Feb. 7, 2016, in Santa Clara, Calif.
Select an option below to continue reading this premium story.
Already a Honolulu Star-Advertiser subscriber? Log in now to continue reading.
Nearly one-third of the prison guards scheduled to work on Super Bowl Sunday called in sick, state officials said Tuesday.
On Feb. 7, 230 adult correctional officers at the state’s eight prison facilities called in sick. That’s down from 255 corrections officers who called in sick on Super Bowl Sunday in 2015. For both this year and last year, 733 officers were assigned to work that day. That meant about 32 percent of the staff called in sick Feb. 7, and about 35 percent used sick leave last year.
State Public Safety Director Nolan Espinda said that despite the increased sick leave on Super Bowl Sunday in comparison with other days, the department was able to keep visiting hours at all institutions by reassigning staff.
To reduce sick leave, supervisors encouraged employees to swap shifts and be more considerate of other co-workers who do show up and have to work short-staffed, he said.
The Corrections Division decreased its overtime costs by about $1.6 million in 2015, to $8 million in 2015 from $9.6 million in 2014, mainly by filling vacancies, Espinda said. The division filled nearly 100 vacancies last year but still has about 45 left.