Prison Closure Update – California Correctional Facility Mitigation Continues

Article published on September 8

As part of the overall closure process for the California City Correctional Facility (CAC), California Correctional Health Care Services (CCHCS) is offering impacted employees in select classifications the ability to affirmatively participate in the mitigation phase related to the closure. This is the phase where the department identifies employees who can be transferred into vacant positions in other locations of the area impacted by the layoff — in this case, Kern County.

Our Union has been putting pressure on both the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and CCHCS to involve our team as well as impacted employees in this mitigation phase to support employees and give them some ability to choose where in Kern County they would be transferred. We are pleased that CCHCS has heard us and is taking steps for employee involvement. Our team continues to pressure CDCR to come up with a similar process that allows employees’ input during this phase.

This process, which the department is referring to as In-County Mitigation, will apply to employees in the following classifications:

  • 5157/5393 – Staff Services Analyst/Associate Governmental Program Analyst
  • 1869 – Health Record Technician I
  • 7374 – Medical Assistant
  • 1139 – Office Technician
  • 7979 – Pharmacy Technician
  • 9275 – Registered Nurse, CF
  • 9350 – Senior Radiological Technologist, CF (Specialist)

There are enough vacancies at CCHCS within Kern County for all employees in these classifications to be placed and removed from the layoff plan. Generally, the department makes placement decisions without any input from any of the impacted employees — this current process will allow impacted employees to note their preferences for placement from among the list of vacancies. Placement will then be made based on seniority. Employees who do not participate will be placed into remaining viable vacancies for their position within Kern County and will not go through the layoff process.

After holding informational sessions onsite September 6-8, the department will also be hosting virtual informational sessions on Monday, September 11, and Wednesday, September 12. Impacted employees should have received information about these sessions in their packets. The final date to submit packets will be Friday, September 15.

We will keep you updated as we work with CDCR and CCHCS throughout this closure process. Our web page on the closure offers a full overview and will be updated regularly. Please submit any questions you may have to CACClosure@seiu1000.org