Jeff Davis Parish Sheriff Kyle Miers is hoping pay raises will help recruit and retain correctional officers for the parish’s regional jail by making the salaries more competitive in the region.

The Jeff Davis Parish Police Jury on Wednesday approved a finance committee’s recommendation to cover the cost of a pay raise for 17 of the parish’s 28 correctional officers. The pay raises will be paid from revenue generated by a voter approved tax for the maintenance and operation of the jail.

The Sheriff’s Office will provide the funding for the remaining correctional officers.

The average increase will be about $7,000 a year for the correctional officers based on current salaries, according to  Miers.

“Obviously we are going to have to adjust as needed by the whole sheriff’s department,” Miers said. “Not only does it affect pay, but it also affects pensions.”

Under the plan, the annual starting salary for correctional officers is expected to increase from $27,600 to $35,000. The increase will bring the parish more in line with the average pay across the region of $34,550, Miers said.

The pay increase is expected to begin with the Aug. 29 paychecks, he said.

Miers, who has been advocating for the salary increases since being elected, said the goal of the increase is to retain current employees, help attract future employees, and make salaries more competitive in the region.

“It is much needed to help us compete with regional businesses,” Miers said. “The biggest focus for this is to recruit and retain qualified people.”

In surveying the area, Miers said Jeff Davis Parish has the lowest starting salary in the local five-parish region and is among the lowest when compared to 15 other parishes.