Ontario Ombudsman’s Special Report on Use of Force in MCSCS Institutional Services
September 27, 2011
The Corrections MERC team members recently met with investigators
from the Ombudsman Office. The Ombudsman investigation will look at
the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services’ response
to inmate complaints of excessive force, including how it conducts
investigations and enforces policies on the use of force.
We put forward the argument that the Ombudsman’s investigation
should be a more comprehensive look into the correctional services
system in Ontario with a view of addressing the many concerns that
our members have including but not limited to: overcrowding, access
to training, increased workloads with no increase in staffing
levels, chronic staff shortages, limited access to existing personal
protective equipment, length of internal investigations, lack of
inmate programming, increased levels of violence in the workplace,
increase in the level of gang activities in institutions, lack of
resources for occupational stress injuries and post traumatic stress
disorders.
The MERC emphasized the issue that the investigations on the use
of force, in general, are too long and drawn out, unfocused and in
many cases lasting more than a year. Fixed term (unclassified)
correctional officers are treated significantly differently with
less concern for personal welfare then (regular) full-time
correctional officers.
We’ve informed the Ombudsman’s investigators that the Ministry of
Community Safety and Correctional Services operates with arrogance
and immunity. There is no public scrutiny of operational procedures
and when questioned or challenged in the proper forums by the
bargaining unit representatives, the ministry has typically
stonewalled, dismissed and ignored our concerns in many cases.
The Corrections MERC strongly advised the Ombudsman’s office that
a report which failed to consider the systemic problems of
Corrections in Ontario was simply doing a disservice to our members,
the inmates and the citizens of this province.
This is OUR opportunity to stand up and be heard. We have made
ourselves and the members available to assist and, in any way
possible, to aid the Ombudsman in this investigation. The MERC is
asking that all locals write to the Ombudsman’s Office to also
afford their assistance so that OUR collective voices do not go
unheard.
In Solidarity,
Dan Sidsworth
OPSEU
MERC Chair
MCSCS
w 905-878-8141 ex.2415
c 905-691-7955
dansidsworth@cogeco.ca
