Michigan cancels state contract with Aramark

The state of Michigan is pulling the plug on its problem-plagued contract with prison food vendor Aramark Correctional Services, halfway through what was planned as a three-year deal.

The state is parting ways with Aramark by "mutual agreement" and moving to a new contractor, Florida-based Trinity Services Group, the state announced Monday.

A transition will begin July 29 and is expected to be concluded on Sept. 9 -- what would have been three months shy of the two-year anniversary of Aramark's three-year, $145-million contract with the state of Michigan.

The Free Press, using the Freedom of Information Act and other sources, has documented a litany of problems with the prison food service since Philadelphia-based Aramark took over the contract, replacing 370 state employees. Issues have ranged from meal shortages to maggots in the kitchen, to smuggling of drugs and other contraband by Aramark employees, to Aramark workers engaging in sex acts with prisoners.

Prison officials say 176 Aramark workers have been terminated and banned from prison property for a range of transgressions, including allegedly attempting to hire an inmate to have another inmate assaulted.

Though Monday's move was widely applauded, it didn't satisfy all the critics of the state's decision to privatize the prison food service as a cost-cutting move.

Ed McNeil, special assistant to the president of Michigan AFSCME Council 25, which represented the state prison kitchen workers, said instead of contracting with Trinity, the state should bring state employees back into the kitchen.

"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and then expecting a different result," said McNeil. "This is a different company but we will get the same result – poor service for the money state taxpayers are spending."

In May, the Free Press reported that the state invited Trinity, which was the second-lowest bidder when Aramark won the contract, to assist in a cost "benchmarking" exercise after Aramark asked for changes state officials said would have affected the cost of the contract -- billing based on how many inmates were housed in the prisons, rather than how many meals were served; and making changes to required menu items.

"Aramark came to us to discuss contract changes and we just weren't comfortable," said Caleb Buhs, a spokesman for the Department of Technology, Management and Budget. That's when the parties eventually agreed mutually to part ways, he said.

Trinity's three-year deal will be worth $158 million. That's $13 million more than the Aramark deal. But Buhs said when cost of living increases that Aramark would likely have received are factored out, the deal will cost the state a little over $400,000 more per year.

Brom Stibitz, the deputy director of DTMB, said "the contract with Trinity will ensure uninterrupted food delivery service in Michigan correctional facilities," with "assurance that the state will receive quality service in return." He said cost savings under Trinity are expected to be $11.5 million a year, down from estimates of $12 million to $14 million under Aramark.

Christopher Alberta, CEO of Trinity Services Group, said the company is "thrilled to partner with (the state) to provide our quality food service to the DOC's 33 facilities."

Aramark spokeswoman Karen Cutler said: "Regrettably, the partnership with the Michigan Department of Corrections has not worked out as both sides hoped."

"We take full responsibility for all aspects of our performance while operating in a highly charged political environment that included repeated false claims," Cutler said. "Ultimately, we were unable to resolve a number of shared issues and as a result we mutually agreed with MDOC to end the contract."

Gov. Rick Snyder said the state "will remain focused on moving forward," and "Michigan will continue to realize significant cost savings from this new contract."

Senate Minority Leader Jim Ananich, D-Flint, said scrutiny on Aramark needs to be high from the beginning so problems don't happen "over and over," as they did with Aramark. Michigan didn't have such problems when state employees worked in the prison kitchens, Ananich said.