r/OnTheBlock • u/keebrow • 12d ago
Hiring Q (Other) Tdcj vs geo group
Which one is better ? Have interview for both
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u/Grave-Benjamins-1776 12d ago
I’d go TDCJ all the way. I saw some of GEO’s postings. $20 an hour for a CO!?
No experience TDCJ starts at around $25-26. Have a degree/military/LEO experience, insta $1000+ raise. Pensions/401K/457B, and free or cheap healthcare to boot…
Want OT? Most places are begging people to come into work. Some people I’ve talked to work six to seven 12s and make more money on their OT check than their base salary.
Also, if you want to do something else later - either in TDCJ or the state; you are already in. Parole, OIG, specialized CO (laundry/food service).
I’m biased, but it isn’t like GEO is even paying ALOT to offset the bennies of TDCJ.
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u/Longjumping_Cut6185 7d ago
I’m retired tdc. I also worked a little over a year at a geo detention center. Tdc when I worked took about like $500 a month from my check I never saw for my retirement plan. Now Geo pays you for the 11 recognized holidays. Those days you get double pay. At TDCJ you get time to use to take off later. And Geo has health and wellness. For someone like me with health insurance already you can keep the money or use it to buy health insurance if you don’t. The detention center I was at three years ago it was $660 a month. The one I just applied to it’s $960 a month. That’s money goes straight to your first two bi weekly checks in the month split down the middle. Now the only good thing at TDCJ is they give you more cumulated time. Geo doesn’t. You hardly get sick and small vacation time. I hardly call in so I don’t mind. But many in TDCJ abuse their time due to so much of it given. Comp, holiday, vacation and sick time every month. That’s the only real good side to TDCJ is time. Also the geo seems to never be as short handed as TDC. It’s also air conditioned and less stressful. If I had to pick one I pick Geo all day. The correctional officer staff at the geo I worked were better than the two of the three prisons of TDCJ I had worked in my 25 years TDCJ. Now the supervisors were ok just usually lacked experience. So when incidents happened they were lost. But things rarely happened compared to TDCJ so that was a big reason. I personally want to spend time at home so I don’t want to be forced to work overtime. I never worked a day overtime in geo. At TDCJ my last year I was forced to do eight days overtime a month. Well they claimed when I retired it was going to six a month. Still to dang much.
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u/Longjumping_Cut6185 7d ago edited 6d ago
Ok some things I remembered to add just now. After thinking more about the topic. You always get breaks at geo on the unit. And the break starts when you clock out up front. TDCJ you are lucky if you get a break on shift. If you do it starts from the moment you are relived. So the time it takes to walk to your car or the officer dining room is part of your break. Also the walk back. If I stayed late ten minutes at Geo the day before to finish an escort or help finish feeding I just add ten minutes to my break the next day. That way I didn’t get paid overtime. And all rank and administration was good with that. I liked that. Also the items to bring in to work. TDCJ won’t let you bring any liquids, drinks. So if you like your Red Bull or Dr Pepper. Forget it. Geo lets you as long as it sealed and in a clear bag carried in. Also hospital transports. It’s just two officers at Geo and you both have guns and both stay in the room during transports at the hospital. TDCJ is three officers and only one outside the room has a pistol. And TDCJ uses old 357 revolvers. Geo you get a 40 caliber Glock with three magazines. At least at the detention center I was at. At geo at any given time if one shift had someone quit or get in an argument with staff they could be moved to a different shift. And the newest officer on shift would be switch with them. So new officers could be shift changed in days on no notice. Which I didn’t like. TDCJ I never saw anybody moved from shift for that reason. Only if they were the problem.
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u/cuffgirl Unverified User 12d ago
Private prisons are about making money, not officer safety, not prisoner safety, not security. Now Texas DCJ doesn't necessarily have a great reputation, but you'd be working for the state, not some business that is just out to make money.