The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "understaffed" ...
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Positive
"The state of Illinois has increased its HIV spending by tens of millions of dollars-creating two new grant programs designed to combat the epidemic among African Americans. One of the grant programs was mismanaged and much of the funding does not target the highest risk population." Furthermore, the health department and non-profits were either understaffed or waiting for the funds to be received before they could treat anyone.
Tags: Illinois; AIDS; African Americans; Human Immunodeficiency Virus(HIV); Grant programs
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State Employees Salaries (Balancing Act)
This series analyzes the salaries of Minnesota's state employees and found that in the year before the governor instituted a state hiring freeze, about a third of the state work force earned more than $50 million in overtime pay. A handful of employees earned more in overtime pay than in regular wages. The analysis supported claims by employee unions that understaffing was driving up overtime costs. The series also revealed that faculty at state colleges and universities are earning significant bonuses for teaching online courses beyond their full-time course load. Two St. Cloud State University professors rank among the highest-paid state employees in Minnesota.
Tags: salary records; state government; state officials; hiring freeze; understaffing; wages; overtime costs; employee compensation
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Losing Track: NC's Troubled Probation System
North Carolina's probation system has been in disarray for years. Probation officers are overworked and understaffed, and offenders often receive little or no supervision. Top managers ignored problems for years and killed promising projects to monitor offenders.
Tags: probation; crime; North Carolina; prison; murder; public safety; criminal; murder
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Tarnished Badges
A loop hole in South Carolina law allows for law enforcement officers to continue working in the police force despite having a history of misconduct and criminal behaviors. Also the agency in charge of monitoring and disciplining the officers was discovered to be understaffed and underfunded.
Tags: police officers; law; law enforcement; discipline
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When Seconds Count
This investigation is a continuation of the original story which exposed problems with Virginia Beach's volunteer rescue service. After a 10-month investigation, reporters found that only 60 percent of patients received help within six minutes. The volunteer service is also overworked and understaffed, and, in many cases, rescues were slow because crews got lost trying to find the neighborhoods.
Tags: rescue workers; slow response time; firefighters; emergency; CPR
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Housing Code Violations Fall Through the Cracks
Spencer Soper and Santa Rosa's Press Democrat investigate how landlords in Sonoma County exploited a weak and understaffed county code enforcement division. Landlords let their rental properties fall into disrepair, endangered the lives of tenants, and piled up numerous violations with no serious legal repercussions.
Tags: rental properties; housing inspection; housing code violations; Sonoma County Housing; negligent landlord
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Security fears at Newark Airport
This series of stories examines the security deficiencies at Newark Liberty International Airport, one of the three airports breached by terrorists on Sept. 11, 2001. More than two years after Sept. 11, thousands of bags each day are not being scanned for explosives and security checkpoints remain seriously understaffed, the newspaper found. Subsequent stories revealed equipment problems, security lapses and significant employee absences by security personnel.
Tags: airport security; Newark Liberty International Airport; Sept. 11; TSA; Transportation Security Administration
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Dangerous Doctors
This story profiles four doctors who are frequently sued for malpractice. These doctors practiced surgery while on drugs, abandoned their patients and even left surgical tools inside patients, but they were all lightly disciplined and allowed to continue practicing. Burnett looked into possible means of alleviating the current insurance "crisis," such as harsher discipline for doctors who harm patients. But he found that state medical boards are often too understaffed, underfunded or too ineffectual to be effective monitors of the industry.
Tags: insurance; malpractice; doctors; hospitals; National Practitioner Databank
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The Dangers of Daycare
The story exposes the fact that day-care centers responsible for tens of thousands of Ohio children routinely keep their state licenses despite repeated violations of state laws designed to protect children. State inspections of 615 licensed day-care centers in Franklin and surrounding counties found that 59% of day-care centers failed to run a criminal background check on workers, 39% of the centers were understaffed, 22% did not post their state-inspection reports, 51% of the centers had conditions that were unsafe for children, and 56% of the centers hired staff or administrators who were unqualified.
Tags: day-care; criminal background check; Ohio Department of Job and Family Services; violations; Action for Children; Ohio Association for the Education of Young Children; United Way; inspectors; Children's World Learning Center; license revocation
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Behind the Bars
This series of investigations took the Times/Tribune readers inside the Lackawanna County Prison, and revealed "a history of chronic mismanagement, malfeasance and allegations of criminal activity." Reporters found "widespread misuse of inmate labor, lax security, chronic understaffing, improper sexual activity between guards and inmates and physical abuse inflicted on many inmates by guards."