Columbia, SC (WLTX) - South Carolina Department Corrections Director Bryan Stirling took questions from senators during a subcommittee hearing on the state of the prison system.
He says despite efforts to bring new employees in, the correctional officer numbers are low.
"For the better part of this decade we have been losing employees left and right," says Stirling.
The department is down 612 front line employees and only have the funding to hire 285.
"I think our employees are stretched," says Stirling.
Along with questions about employee numbers, senators asked about the morale within the department.
"I think we're doing a lot to address morale, but I think if you're one person and you're working a 12 hour shift and you're asked to do a lot, I think that's very stressful," says Stirling.
Raising salaries, adding overtime, providing leadership training and upgrading boots and uniforms are ways that Stirling says the department has worked to boost morale among officers.
However, there's still an issue of inmate treatment. Senator Karl Allen says he's received letters from inmates, detailing their concerns within different institutions.
"Specifically it goes into medical treatment or the lack there of of medical attention for the inmates when they have a health occurrence," says Sen. Allen, D-Greenville."
Sen. Allen wants the inmates and employees to have an open line of communication with lawmakers.
Reverend Nelson Rivers of the National Action Network says a lack of medical treatment at the Broad River facility, killed his nephew back in 2013.
He says he's still striving to fight for a better system for both the employees and the inmates.
"So it's time for us to wise up, treat people fair, lets be just and lets deal with why is it that our mass incarceration system has not improved," says Rivers.
As for the inmates at Lee Correctional, they are currently on lockdown. Director Stirling says they will remain on a 24 hour lockdown until they can wrap up their investigation into the April 15, 2018 riot, but did not have a timeline for that.