PROVIDENCE – The number of state workers who made $100,000 or more increased 21 percent over three years, to 2,336 in 2018 from 1,936 in 2016, WPRI-TV CBS 12 reported on Feb. 4.
The increase accounts for roughly $304 million in state spending, a 23 percent increase from nearly $248 million in 2016. Benefits costs and payments into the retirement system were not included.
Of the 2,336 workers, 499 are officers at the Adult Correctional Institutions in Cranston. A three-year hiring freeze, while the state was being sued by the U.S. Department of Justice over its testing process for hiring, led to fewer ACI officers and more overtime, said Richard Ferruccio, president of the correctional officers’ union. He said the ACI loses 40-50 officers a year.
The suit has since been settled and 70 new correctional officers began in July.
