Merry Christmas…and don’t get sick Ministry’s “sinister” letter puts members on notice
 

On December 3, 2007 the Ministry sent a letter to all staff regarding what they feel is an unacceptable number of absences in adult institutions. While the intent of the letter is fairly straightforward, it is the sinister undertones that are a serious concern to your MERC Team.

Everyone should feel the hairs go up on their neck when wording like “currently exploring strategies that will enable us to respond to the extremely high level of staff absences, in some areas, in a planned and reasonable manner” is contained in a Ministry missive. This is nothing short of putting us all on notice, good attendance or not. Reading between the lines, it looks like we will be harassed and disciplined at every turn when absent. The employer does not seem interested in assisting the members, only in saving money at our expense.

We recognize that staff absences have been an issue the employer has been struggling with for quite some time. For years the union has been trying to get the Ministry to address the many issues that have an effect on absenteeism. Sick time in our institutions is on the same level as Corrections ministries in other provinces, yet our Ministry sets an unrealistically low attendance management threshold. What, then, is the problem? It is not just our issue; it is an effect from the type of work we do. We must address the cause, not attack the people who are obviously struggling with more profound and complicated issues than just absenteeism.

The Ministry has done nothing to correct the issues that have a negative impact on our members. They have neglected to deal with the exploding inmate remand counts; they have failed to address systemic and racial issues in our workplace; they have refused to address the age of the jails we work in year after year, and; they have not addressed the workplace stress, and accommodation issues. The female offender and remand counts in the province are over the capacity limits, and the employer has no plans in place to deal with the numbers. We simply do not have enough beds. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg.

As well, the Ministry and the MERC are about to review the terms of reference of the Systemic and Anti Racism Change Committee yet again. This twenty year struggle continues. And in a recent inquest at the Owen Sound Jail, the superintendent said (under oath), “It is time for a new jail.” When asked if she knew of any plan by the Ministry to replace the jail, the superintendent said “I think the ministry should.”

Our workplace standards have improved greatly in the 130 years since the Owen Sound Jail was built. The jail has not. Owen Sound is not alone; there are more jails that have outlived their time. The working and living conditions for both inmates and our members is no longer at levels that are healthy and safe to be exposed to.

This lack of any forward planning and direction can no longer go unquestioned.

We have asked the employer to join with the union and look at the stress in our workplaces. The MERC has asked the employer to review a recent case study done in Saskatchewan that looked at Post Traumatic Stress Disorder in Correctional Workers. The study showed that 26 per cent of those in the study had PTSD compared to a normal population average of 3 per cent. This is higher than soldiers who return from combat. Why has this not been addressed?

We have problems in our workplaces that go beyond what the employer terms as “unacceptable” absenteeism. We have, year after year, been exposed to workplaces that are poisonous and making us sick.

Our message to the Ministry? Don’t attack us for struggling to do our work under these conditions. Help us make our workplaces better places to work in year after year. Action will help us correct these problems. Thinly-veiled threats won’t.