Evidence of meeting #49 for Government Operations and Estimates in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was inmates.
A recording is available from Parliament.
National President, Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN)
No.
National President, Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN)
Yes.
NDP
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
Then you should walk off the job tomorrow. Every day they double-bunk these guys in your jail, you should tell your members “Down tools, we're going home.” Stick it to them.
Stick it to them, because you've got them right here. You've got them right by the knackers, right now.
They need you. They need you more than you need them. They need you desperately because they've bankrolled everything. Everything they stand for now is embodied by a prison.
The prisons are nothing without the prison guards. You're their saving grace. You're their hope. Their dream to a majority government is to build more prisons and have them staffed by you.
But you, as a representative of the worker, should not tolerate this unsafe work. I was our union rep, and I would have told my guys to get out of there now: “Down tools. We'll come back when it's safe.”
What do you think?
National President, Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN)
I'm taking notes.
NDP
National President, Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN)
I am taking note of it, but yes, we are at the bargaining table. I think that there was a question about that at the start. We are currently bargaining, and have been since May 31, 2010. It's going to be difficult because two things are not working in our favour. The first is that the government adopted wage freeze legislation in 2009. We are now dealing with a maximum increase of 1.5% for 2011. We don't know if it will be zero or more for 2012 and 2013. The only thing we do know is that, if we bargain with the Treasury Board, it's the department that has to provide the money.
NDP
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
But they have an unlimited ability to pay. They've told us that. There's no ceiling on the money they will spend on prisons. If you started pulling a right to unsafe work every day for the next 30 days, you could write your own cheque. You would just say “sign here” because they'd give it to you. They have to.
They need the prisons. They need the prisons because that's all they're offering the Canadian public. Everything else is cutting, hacking, slashing. Prisons are building, building, building. That's their empire. That's the glory that is Harper's Rome: his one big prison.
National President, Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, Confédération des syndicats nationaux (CSN)
I want only to finish what I started to say. We have major bargaining issues: training, safety, hiring new staff and, of course, the pension plan. At the time, the Conservatives told us that they would be willing to talk. We are still waiting for a call from the government to see how we are going to bargain.
NDP
Pat Martin NDP Winnipeg Centre, MB
But they think substance abuse is a crime, not a sickness. They're not concerned with addictions and substance abuse; they view that as a crime to be punished with prison time.
Believe me, there will be bricks and mortar and there will be more prison guards, but there will be fewer and fewer programs because that's the only place they can cut.
We know the experience of letting people serve their time without programs so they are well when they get back on the street. I predict you'll get the bricks and mortar and you'll get your staff, but you won't get extra programs out of them. I bet you a dollar right today.
Liberal
Geoff Regan Liberal Halifax West, NS
Mr. Chair, I suggest that we ought to ask these excellent witnesses back, because there's much we should hear from them.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal John McKay
Thank you. We can take that up at another time.
Mr. Mallette and your colleague Mr. Stewart, I want to thank you on behalf of the committee.
I don't think you should be overly worried about Mr. Martin taking your job, Mr. Mallette. Nevertheless, I thank you for your willingness to come before the committee. As you can see, already there's some interest in having you return.
Again, thank you.
We'll suspend while we go in camera.
[Proceedings continue in camera]