'The system has some excellent people working in it and Parliament and provincial legislatures need to hear from them.' - MP Joe Comartin
Ottawa (22 September 2006) - MP Joe Comartin, justice critic for the federal New Democratic Party, held a frank and honest meeting Friday with participants at the National Union's Working Session for Correctional Officers and Youth Facility Workers.
"At discussions of all levels of government, the concerns and issues of front line workers in the justice sector are not on the agenda," Comartin confessed. "I try but I need your help in getting the message across."
Representatives at the meeting told Comartin that conditions in some provincial facilities are shockingly bad.
Larry Brown, national secretary-treasurer and meeting chair, said "overcrowding and understaffing" are problems in most provinces and also in the federal system.
"For example, in some facilities in Ontario there is not just double-bunking of inmates but sometimes triple-bunking," Brown said.
"Overcrowding and poor jail conditions are not only a problem for the inmates but also for the people who work with them. We are seeing a dramatic increase in the amount of violence being directed at correctional staff - both adult and youth."
Comartin said some of the problem originates in the degree to which many officials in the sector, both elected and management, are often unaware of daily realities in the country's adult and youth correctional facilities.
"I need your assistance in bringing these issues forward," Comartin told the justice workers.
"You can help by providing information on what is happening on the ground in Canada's justice system. The system has some excellent people working in it and Parliament and provincial legislatures need to hear from them."
Brown thanked Comartin for the forthright discussion of questions asked at the meeting. "You will definitely be hearing more from the National Union on these
issues," Brown promised. NUPGE
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