On Sat., May 5, the Ministry of Correctional Services
announced that the contract to operate the Central North Correctional Centre (CNCC)
in Penetanguishene had been awarded to Management and Training Corporation (MTC)
of Ogden, Utah.
OPSEU president Leah Casselman called the Tory decision a
dark day for the province of Ontario.
“There is absolutely no justification to privatize this
facility,” Casselman said in a press release on May 5. “We have facilities
that are operating cheaper than what the U.S. bid came in at, and we have a
proven track record of running safe institutions. This is just an admission by
Corrections Minister Rob Sampson that he is too incompetent to run his own
ministry.”
In the same release, Barry Scanlon, chair of the OPSEU
Corrections Ministry Employee Relations Committee, said, “this is a slap in
the face to all of the men and women working in the correctional system.”
But the bigger slap went to the citizens of
Penetanguishene.
Just one day before the Ministry announcement,
representatives from 15 municipalities gathered in Penetanguishene at the
invitation of town council to hear concerns about the planned privatization of
the superjail. It was a last-ditch attempt by the town to try to persuade the
Tories not to sell off the facility. Less than 24 hours later, the government
slammed the door shut on democracy in Ontario.
Sharon Dion, chair of Citizens Against Private Prisons,
was devastated. Many town councillors, who still had a faint glimmer of hope
that the government would listen to the small community that had gained so much
publicity across Canada and the U.S., were equally devastated.
“I’m still numb,” Dion said. “I really thought
that this government would make a last-minute decision to do the right thing and
run this jail publicly. I’m just too upset now to even think straight.”
Sharon Dion has earned the right to be upset. No one, and
we mean no one, has put more time, effort and personal sacrifice into
fighting the privatization of the jail than she has. She galvanized the citizens
of her community. She organized demonstrations, parades and public meetings. She
lobbied, made phone calls, sent faxes and wrote letters to individuals and
groups around the world. She even turned her second-hand clothing store on
Penetang’s main street into a virtual “No Private Jails” headquarters.
Sharon spent thousands of hours fighting for her community.
Sharon wasn’t alone. Penetanguishene town councillors
were fighting alongside her. So were everyday citizens who feared the
consequences of a privately run jail.
This does not in any way discount the incredible work done
by OPSEU members. The campaign to stop the first private adult jail in Canada
was incredible. However, we should take a moment to salute the people of
Penetanguishene, without whose support we would not have been as successful as
we were.
And yes, we were successful. Hopefully, Sharon and
everyone else involved realize the impact of their actions. Thanks to this
campaign, the government did not bring in Wackenhut, Corrections Corp. or Group
IV. The government had to pick a company with a higher per-diem rate, less
negative press and one that was politically “prettier” than its
counterparts. Even still, it has become painfully obvious to anyone in the know
that MTC will not be able to run the jail any better than the public service.
When Mike Harris took dictatorial control of this
province, he stated, “Ontario is open for business!” That’s not quite what
he meant. What he means is, “The Ontario government is going out of business.
Everything must go! Prices slashed! No offer refused! We will sell our Canadian
identity and even our souls! Democracy is irrelevant! We’ll sell it, even if
it’s a bad idea!”
The fundamental problem was that the citizens of
Penetanguishene thought that democracy would prevail. You know, that old
fashioned type of democracy, the type that Canadians fought and died for in two
World Wars. Mike Harris has just shown those good citizens the error of their
thinking.
Is this campaign over? Not by a long shot. We have just
entered a new phase where we now know the name of our adversary. Is this company
as squeaky clean as it lets on to be? Nope. The Internet is a marvelous tool. It’s
amazing what a computer and a telephone can turn up.
However, we would like to take the time to tip our hats to
the friendly, outgoing, honest and hard-working people of Penetanguishene. We’re
not quitting. They’re not quitting. We have been proud to have them as allies,
and we will continue to stand together.
Conference calls that had been previously scheduled for
Sun., May 6 were put on hold when the Ministry requested an emergency meeting
with the OPSEU Corrections Provincial Health and Safety Team on Tues., May 8.
The meeting dealt primarily with two issues - the
overcrowding of our facilities province-wide and the ongoing safety concerns at
Maplehurst Complex.
As a result of the meeting, a report to the Assistant
Deputy Minister (ADM) will be prepared and delivered no later than June 8, 2001.
This report will contain recommendations on ways to alleviate overcrowding and
staff tensions in our facilities.
For issues at Maplehurst, the Ministry Health and Safety
Committee will meet on May 16 to follow up on outstanding issues.
Daryl Pitfield, chair of the Health and Safety team, is
confident that the Ministry is taking these concerns seriously.
“This is not a report that will sit and gather dust,”
Pitfield said. “The Ministry is quite serious about addressing these issues,
and we will ensure that the recommendations made to the ADM are implemented
before summer.”
Barry Scanlon, chair of the OPSEU Corrections Ministry
Employee Relations Committee, gives full credit to the members who pushed health
and safety issues vigorously at the local level.
“It’s obvious that the “Sabotage” video
distribution and safety concerns raised at individual facilities had a huge
impact on the employer,” Scanlon said. “These are the kind of results you
get when everyone works together.”
Reports on progress will be communicated as they become
available.
