Mike McMahon, a correctional officer with the Champaign County Sheriff’s Office and an elected representative of the Illinois FOP Labor Council, urged the county board Sept. 18 not to eliminate unfilled county positions as a budget‑saving measure. McMahon told the board the sheriff’s office has been short‑staffed for more than five years and said past cuts had not been reversed, leaving the jail with persistent safety and turnover problems.

“Every shift, we struggle to cover the posts that keep the jail safe,” McMahon said in public comment. He described recent attacks on correctional officers in the jail, named the impact of high turnover and institutional knowledge loss, and warned of legal exposure if the county fails to meet statutory obligations to operate and properly staff its jail.

McMahon said cutting vacancies would make it harder to recruit and retain experienced staff and that positions once removed are difficult to restore. He urged the board to pursue strategies to recruit and retain staff rather than eliminate positions that maintain the county’s service capacity.