The B.C. government announced that they are hiring 36 new auxiliary sheriffs positions, according to the B.C. Government and Service Employees' Union (BCGEU), which was notified of the additional spaces this week.

"We are pleased the government has listened to the concerns from sheriffs, judges and the public about the need to have proper security in our courts," said BCGEU president Darryl Walker. "The entire court system has slowed to a crawl for the past couple of years, because the government hasn’t replaced vacant sheriff positions.

“This is a welcome step forward, but the government needs to continue to replace the more than 100 sheriffs that have left to higher paying law enforcement jobs. I would like to thank the public for their support on this issue as well as the lawyers and judges who spoke out in our favour."

On May 27 deputy sheriffs, mostly in the Lower Mainland, had their hours cut dramatically by the provincial government – including 28 auxiliary deputy sheriffs who had their hours cut by up to 90 percent, and 24 regular part-time deputy sheriffs whose hours were cut by 25 percent. The net result of these cuts was a loss of 34 full-time staff. Those position were restored on June 20, 2011.

"The cuts caused a number of trials to be adjourned or stood down, including a home invasion trial and a murder trial, because judges felt their courts were unsafe without the presence of a deputy sheriff to provide security," said Walker.

"The provincial government already had problems keeping courts operating before these cuts on May 27, but this slowed the wheels of justice to a crawl," said Dean Purdy, chair of the union's Corrections and Sheriff Services component. "Hiring these new sheriffs will help somewhat to restore the bogged down court system."

The number of sheriffs has gone from 525 just a few years ago to approximately 385 now.

"The reduction in the number of sheriffs is due primarily to the hiring freeze that has been in place for the past two years within government,” said Purdy. “We have lost a number of members to other higher paying law enforcement agencies like the police and sheriffs in Alberta, who earn $15,000 a year more."

The BC government announced to staff that they will be posting sheriff graduates to the following communities: Prince George (3), Fort St. John (2), Smithers (1), Kelowna (3), Cranbrook (1), Kamloops (2), Victoria (5), Nanaimo (2), Campbell River (1), Central Float in Vancouver (1)5. These positions are a mix of Regular, PPT, and Auxiliary.