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County and city jails
Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, Maricopa County Sheriff's Office, New York City Department of Correction
Correctional Officers and Jailers
Correctional officers and jailers keep jails and prisons secure by counting inmates, checking doors and locks, screening visitors, and moving people safely between housing units, courts, and medical appointments. The work is mostly routine until it isn't: one moment you're organizing schedules and answering questions, and the next you're dealing with a safety problem or conflict. The tradeoff is a structured job with modest training, but it demands constant vigilance and comes with a shrinking long-term outlook.
Also known as Correctional OfficerDetention OfficerJailerPrison GuardCustody Officer
Median Salary
$57,970
Mean $62,760
U.S. Workforce
~365K
30.1K openings per year
10-Year Growth
+-7.8%
387.5K to 357.4K
Entry Education
High school diploma or equivalent
+ None experience
What This Role Looks Like in Practice
Correctional Officers and Jailers sits in the Government category. In practical terms, this role combines day-to-day execution, cross-team coordination, and consistent decision-making under real business constraints.
U.S. employment is currently about ~365K workers, with a median annual pay of $57,970 and roughly 30.1K openings each year. Based on BLS projections, total employment is expected to decline from 387.5 K in 2024 to 357.4K in 2034.
Most hiring paths start with High school diploma or equivalent, and employers typically expect none of related experience. Many careers in this track begin around Correctional Officer Trainee and can progress toward Corrections Lieutenant. High-value skills usually include Monitoring and Observation, Active Listening and De-escalation, and Social Perceptiveness, paired with soft skills such as Speaking, Critical Thinking, and Reading Comprehension.
Core Responsibilities
- Build the daily schedule for inmates, including meals, work assignments, visits, counseling, and library time.
- Give inmates job duties and explain what they need to do.
- Walk through the facility to check locks, doors, bars, gates, and other security points.
- Take regular head counts to make sure everyone is present and accounted for.
Keep exploring: more Government careers or browse all job titles.
A Day in the Life
01 Build the daily schedule for inmates, including meals, work assignments, visits, counseling, and library time.
02 Give inmates job duties and explain what they need to do.
03 Walk through the facility to check locks, doors, bars, gates, and other security points.
04 Take regular head counts to make sure everyone is present and accounted for.
05 Talk with inmates, answer questions, and try to calm conflicts before they escalate.
06 Screen visitors at entrances and escort inmates to courts, hospitals, other facilities, or work sites.
Industries That Hire
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State prison systems
Texas Department of Criminal Justice, California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Florida Department of Corrections
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Federal detention and corrections
Federal Bureau of Prisons, U.S. Marshals Service, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
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Private correctional facilities
CoreCivic, The GEO Group, Management & Training Corporation
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Juvenile detention facilities
Cook County Juvenile Temporary Detention Center, Los Angeles County Probation Department, Miami-Dade County Corrections and Rehabilitation
Pros and Cons
Advantages
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You can get started with a high school diploma, and 92.43% of workers in this role do not need a college degree to enter.
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The mean annual wage is $62,760, which is solid pay for a job with moderate-term on-the-job training instead of years of school.
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There are about 30.1K annual openings, so hiring continues even in a field that is shrinking overall.
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The work is structured and concrete: counts, inspections, transport, and visitor screening give each shift clear priorities.
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There is a real path upward into senior officer, sergeant, and lieutenant roles if you build experience and stay with the agency.
Challenges
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Employment is projected to fall 7.8% by 2034, from 387.5K workers to 357.4K, so this is not a growth field.
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The median pay is $57,970, which is not especially high for a job with constant supervision, conflict, and safety risk.
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The work can turn physical or volatile without warning, so it can be stressful and dangerous even when most of the day is routine.
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You have to be on site for every shift, which means remote work is essentially not an option and schedule flexibility is limited.
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Advancement can be slow and rank-based, so many officers stay in the same kind of work for years unless a supervisory opening appears.
Career Progression
Correctional Officer Trainee
0-1 years
$38K-$45K
Learns post orders, safety rules, inmate counts, and report writing while working under close supervision.
Correctional Officer and Jailer
1-5 years
$46K-$66K
Runs housing-unit routines, checks security, escorts inmates, and handles day-to-day problems on shift.
Senior Correctional Officer THIS ROLE
5-9 years
$67K-$79K
Takes on harder posts, mentors newer officers, and helps manage incidents that need quick judgment.
Correctional Sergeant
9-14 years
$80K-$94K
Supervises officers, assigns posts, reviews reports, and coordinates responses to security issues.
Corrections Lieutenant
14+ years
$95K-$110K
Oversees multiple units or shifts, sets procedures, and handles staffing and major incidents.
Education Paths
High school diploma or equivalent
The most common entry point, held by 92.43% of workers in this occupation, and usually followed by academy-style or on-the-job training.
Associate's degree in criminal justice or a related field
A smaller path, held by 7.57% of workers, and it can help candidates stand out or move up faster in some departments.
Corrections academy or state certification
Some employers hire candidates with a high school diploma and then send them through a correctional academy or certification program before they work independently.
Key Skills
Technical
Monitoring and Observation 80%
Active Listening and De-escalation 80%
Social Perceptiveness 80%
Incident Reporting Systems 76%
Two-Way Radios and Radio Protocols 74%
Inmate Transport and Restraint Procedures 72%
Soft Skills
SpeakingCritical ThinkingReading ComprehensionCoordinationPersuasionStress Tolerance Job Outlook and Trends
+-7.8%
Projected growth (2024-2034)
30.1K
Annual job openings
Employment is projected to rise from 387.5K to 357.4 K over the next decade, representing -7.8% growth. Around 30.1 K openings per year include both newly created roles and replacement hiring from turnover.
Remote availability is currently Rare. Demand remains strongest where employers need practical domain knowledge plus modern workflow and data skills.