December 15, 2000
Paying through the nose
City of Guelph doesn’t think that the
superjail is so super
We doubt Mike Harris is on Guelph council’s Christmas card list.
It was revealed last week that the City of Guelph is going to pay dearly for
the province’s decision to close the Wellington Detention Centre in favour of
holding inmates at the expanded Maplehurst Complex. The Guelph Police Services
Board tabled a budget this week showing just how much - $246,000.
Most of that cost will be the result of having to hold inmates at the Guelph
Police Station for longer periods, not to mention the additional transportation
costs of ferrying inmates back and forth to court.
The Tory government, in a fit of seasonal generosity, has offered to
reimburse the city for the purchase of a van, and a percentage of the mileage.
Beyond that, it will be Guelph’s taxpayers footing the bill.
Nice.
A Guelph Tribune editorial calls the situation unfair. After all, the Tribune
rightly points out, the city of Guelph had absolutely no say in this matter.
Therefore, the Tribune says, the province should pay.
This kind of logic does not compute in the Tory world. The Harris government
has gotten way too used to making half-baked decisions and stiffing someone else
with the bill. That is the very foundation of provincial downloading.
Barry Scanlon, chair of the OPSEU Corrections Ministry Employee Relations
Committee, points out that this news isn’t exactly a revelation.
"We told municipalities that they would take a monetary hit because of
the superjails when the province first decided to go that route," Scanlon
said. "Some listened, and some didn’t. Unfortunately, the taxpayers now
get to pay for the government’s ‘cost efficiencies’."
There is one little cost that the City of Guelph hasn’t said too much about
yet. That would be the loss of nearly 500 professional public service jobs,
thanks to the closure of Guelph C.C. and Wellington Detention Centre. When you
add those in, Guelph will be losing $2.5 million dollars.
Aren’t cost efficiencies and tax cuts great?
Ministry treading water on Springboard
Fresh from the "locking the barn door after the horse is stolen"
files, we have learned that Ministry of Corrections officials are hurriedly
interviewing probation and parole staff about information given to Operation
Springboard.
Operation Springboard is a non-profit agency that provides "alternative
sentencing" programs. The Ministry came under fire when it was revealed
that probation and parole staff were ordered to release confidential young
offender information to the agency.
Liberal Corrections Critic David Levac blasted Premier Mike Harris in the
Legislature last week, calling for an investigation into the issue.
"You owe it to Ontario's parole officers to make sure these problems are
investigated fully and that such a breakdown in communication from your
government never happens again," Levac said.
Harris had earlier dismissed the issue, but Levac produced documents proving
that the government was aware of problems as early as last April.
Ministry officials have also interviewed David Kerr, probation and parole
member on the OPSEU Corrections Ministry Employee Relations Committee. "I
was pleased that the Ministry actually consulted front line staff as well as
union representatives," Kerr said.
Talking to the people who actually do the work is a little out of step for
this Ministry as of late. Perhaps the departure of our former Minister has
something to do with that.
We will keep you posted as the saga continues.
Resolution watch
The resolution count hits 151 this week with the addition of the Township of
West Perth (west of Stratford) and the Township of Norfolk (south of Tillsonburg).
Thanks go out again to the dogged effort of the Resolution Warrior, Len Mason of
Local 737 (Thunder Bay Jail).
Still awaiting vacation decision
OPSEU is still waiting for a decision on the vacation scheduling grievance.
Management was supposed to reply to a union proposal for settlement this
week, but that answer has now been delayed until Monday.
We will notify you as soon as that decision is reached.
For campaign information, call Don Ford (ext. 442) or Carol Whitehead
(ext. 356) at
1-800-268-7376 or (416) 443-8888. e-mail: dford@opseu.org
or cwhitehead@opseu.org
Ontario Public Service Employees Union
100 Lesmill Road, Toronto, Ontario M3B 3P8
www.opseu.org
opseu@opseu.org
Original authorized for distribution by Leah Casselman, president.
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