Dept. of Corrections offering up to $6,000 in hiring and retention bonuses to recruit new officers

Columbia Correctional Institution in Lake City is one of the Florida prisons where correctional officers could be eligible for $5,000 retention bonuses. (Photo from Florida Dept. of Corrections website)A month after Gov. Ron DeSantis vetoed legislation that would have provided tens of millions of dollars to the Florida Department of Corrections (FDC) for pay increases for correctional officers, the department announced on Friday that it is now offering up to $6,000 in hiring and retention bonuses at select prisons throughout the state. They include a new $1,000 hiring bonus at 13 correctional institutions and, at select institutions, an already existing $5,000 retention bonus for eligible officers, providing up to $6,000 in total incentives. The Florida Department of Corrections is committed to investing in the men and women who choose to serve and support Florida s public safety mission, said Corrections Assistant Deputy Secretary of Institutions Hope Gartman in a written statemen