The Snake River Correctional Institution (SRCI) is located along the Oregon / Idaho border in southeast Oregon about four miles north of Ontario, Oregon. The institution opened in 1991.
SRCI is a combination Medium / Minimum custody Institution. As of January 2000 the inmate population was 2,804 with only 172 of its inmates classified and housed in minimum custody. The original construction design of the facility is to house approximately 3,000 inmates.
Local 3940 is comprised of approximately 570 Correctional Officers, Corporals and Sergeants. They are supported by approximately 225 non-custodial staff who perform various duties including nursing, supervision of food preparation, clerical duties, counseling, etc.
Local 3940 has been in a constant battle with the Oregon Department of Corrections. They have endured a management which is hostile to labor organizations. This has caused many battles to be taken into the arbitration arena. Compromise and the spirit of cooperation has yet to become the norm at Snake River. Female correctional staff have endured sexual harassment from managers and been discriminated against. One female employee won approximately one million dollars in settlement for their actions. In 2002, the EEOC ruled in sixteen cases, there was illegal discrimination against managers. The Department of Corrections, as of July 01, 2002, has still failed to recognize the unlawful actions or take corrective action. This is but an example of what this local union has endured.