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First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers

First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers: Career Overview

Directly supervise and coordinate activities of correctional officers and jailers.

The Daily Work of First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers Perform?

Typical responsibilities of first-line supervisors of correctional officers span:

  • Take, receive, or check periodic inmate counts.
  • Maintain order, discipline, and security within assigned areas in accordance with relevant rules, regulations, policies, and laws.
  • Maintain knowledge of, comply with, and enforce all institutional policies, rules, procedures, and regulations.
  • Respond to emergencies, such as escapes.
  • Supervise and direct the work of correctional officers to ensure the safe custody, discipline, and welfare of inmates.
  • Supervise or perform searches of inmates or their quarters to locate contraband items.
  • Monitor behavior of subordinates to ensure alert, courteous, and professional behavior toward inmates, parolees, fellow employees, visitors, and the public.
  • Restrain, secure, or control offenders, using chemical agents, firearms, or other weapons of force as necessary.

Skills and Knowledge

Effective first-line supervisors of correctional officers rely on a mix of skills and domain knowledge.

Key Skills

These are the skills most important for this role, rated on an importance scale of 0 to 5:

Active Listening  4.0 / 5
0
5
Social Perceptiveness  4.0 / 5
0
5
Monitoring  4.0 / 5
0
5
Coordination  4.0 / 5
0
5
Critical Thinking  4.0 / 5
0
5
Speaking  3.9 / 5
0
5

Top Knowledge Areas

Public Safety and Security  4.8 / 5
0
5
Law and Government  4.4 / 5
0
5
Administration and Management  4.2 / 5
0
5
Psychology  4.1 / 5
0
5
English Language  4.0 / 5
0
5
Administrative  3.7 / 5
0
5

Types of First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers Jobs

This career also goes by job titles like:

  • Commissary Manager
  • Correction Officer Supervisor
  • Correction Warden
  • Correctional Captain
  • Correctional Case Records Supervisor
  • Correctional Housing Unit Manager
  • Correctional Officer Captain
  • Correctional Program Supervisor

Employment and Demand

There are about 242,460 first-line supervisors of correctional officers working in the United States today. This occupation is expected to grow by +8.8% over the projection horizon.

Forecasted number of jobs for First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers

First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers Pay

Statistic Value
Annual median $78,129
Hourly median $37.56
10th percentile $56,179
25th percentile $67,154
75th percentile $89,104
90th percentile $100,079

Wages vary widely based on experience, location, and industry.

Salary ranges for First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers

Pay by State

State Annual median salary
California $127,380
New Jersey $110,850
Oregon $108,060
Illinois $106,510
Nevada $103,230
Utah $97,430
New York $97,390
Massachusetts $96,450
Alaska $95,120
Washington $94,070
Hawaii $93,840
Pennsylvania $92,480
Wisconsin $92,410
Minnesota $91,790
Connecticut $84,040
New Hampshire $80,620
Alabama $80,570
Delaware $79,960
Nebraska $79,610
Ohio $78,480
Maryland $78,280
North Dakota $76,980
Michigan $75,460
Arizona $75,400
South Dakota $75,320
Colorado $74,420
Iowa $73,880
Wyoming $72,550
Tennessee $70,510
Idaho $69,720
Vermont $69,330
South Carolina $68,310
North Carolina $66,800
Montana $65,120
Virginia $64,830
Maine $64,500
Kansas $61,730
New Mexico $61,360
Texas $59,590
Louisiana $59,290
Oklahoma $57,390
West Virginia $56,720
Indiana $55,160
Florida $54,270
Georgia $54,080
Kentucky $50,950
Mississippi $48,830
Arkansas $48,620
Missouri $45,390

Where First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers Earn the Most

Earnings for first-line supervisors of correctional officers differ across the country. These regions lead on median pay:

Region Median annual wage Share of U.S. jobs Location quotient
Far Western US $117,334 12.7% 0.86
Middle Atlantic $94,364 15.6% 1.13
Great Lakes $88,433 12.8% 1.11
New England $84,137 2.3% 0.68
Rocky Mountains $76,066 3.1% 0.82
Plains States $66,491 6.7% 1.21
Southwest $61,927 12.3% 1.01
Southeast $57,593 34.4% 1.69

Highest-Paying Metro Areas for First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers

Metro area State Median annual wage Employment
Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom, CA CA $130,830 580
Fresno, CA CA $129,860 340
El Centro, CA CA $127,920 210
San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA CA $127,850 180
San Luis Obispo-Paso Robles, CA CA $127,850 110
Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA CA $127,380 620
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA CA $123,670 240
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ NY $120,270 2,020

Top Industries Employing First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers

The largest employers of first-line supervisors of correctional officers are found across these industries:

Industry Employment Median annual wage
Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services 1,360 $68,800

The table below shows some of the most common industries where those employed in this career field work.

First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers industries

Tech Stack

  • Data base user interface and query software: Microsoft Access (hot technology)
  • Spreadsheet software: Microsoft Excel (hot technology)
  • Office suite software: Microsoft Office software (hot technology)
  • Electronic mail software: Microsoft Outlook (hot technology)
  • Presentation software: Microsoft PowerPoint (hot technology)
  • Word processing software: Microsoft Word (hot technology)

Work Environment

Daily working conditions for first-line supervisors of correctional officers tends to involve the following characteristics:

  • E-Mail
  • Telephone Conversations
  • Contact With Others
  • Health and Safety of Other Workers
  • Indoors, Environmentally Controlled

Getting Started in This Career

Entry-level first-line supervisors of correctional officers positions require a high school diploma or equivalent as the typical entry-level education. The role falls in Medium Preparation Needed (Job Zone 3), indicating the level of preparation typically expected.

Other Careers to Consider

Similar Occupations

Where to Study

Future first-line supervisors of correctional officers commonly pursue programs in:

4 programs across 1 majors

Sources

Data on this page comes from the following authoritative sources:

  • U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
  • BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
  • O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.

SOC code: 33-1011.00 (First-Line Supervisors of Correctional Officers).

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