A WCB inspection of the North Fraser Pre-Trial Centre (NFPC) has resulted in nine orders being written. The inspection was carried out by three senior WCB inspectors between April 23-26.

The inspectors found the NFPC was in non-compliance with health and safety regulations in a number of areas. The inspectors issued nine orders, including:

• The employer must conduct a risk assessment for the living units. The risk assessment must involve the Joint Health and Safety Committee (JHSC), living unit officers and pod control officers. The risk assessment must address specific safety concerns brought forward by staff who work on living units such as the potential risk to the living unit officer during cell inspections, sight lines of the pod control officers (ability to locate the living unit officer at all times), duties of the pod officer, layout of the living unit, methods of access and egress and the degree to which the living unit would allow a potential assailant to hide;
• OC spray must be provided to all living unit officers as the current policy of not providing OC to staff working the living units fails to ensure the risk to staff from inmate violence is minimized;
• Incident investigation reports must clearly identify unsafe conditions/acts/procedures and recommend corrective actions;
• The JHSC must be properly maintained;
• The worker co-chair of the JHSC must be provided with the necessary time off from work;
• The employer must provide the JHSC with follow-up reports of corrective actions;
• Pod control officers must receive effective training on the Digital Video Monitoring System;
• First aid treatment must be prompt and maintain confidentiality, and
• Develop and implement procedures for the selection, use, inspection, cleaning, maintenance and storage of respirators.

Click here to see the WCB’s NFPC inspection report.

The WCB inspectors reiterated the importance of specific examples in order to confirm non-compliance of regulations. Specific examples allow the WCB to direct the employer to take specific actions to be in compliance of regulations.

BCGEU staff representatives and members from the Component 1 executive have had ongoing meetings with the WCB representatives to discuss violence inside BC’s nine provincial jails. The WCB inspections came about because of these meetings. Concerns raised by your union include but are not limited to:

• Direct supervision model and officer/inmate ratios as risk factors in the violence prevention risk assessments;
• Single Corrections Officer hospital escorts;
• OC spray as personal protection equipment;
• Egress routes and Living Unit Officer Stations, and
• The formation of a tripartite committee (the union, the employer, the WCB) to examine health and safety issues in corrections.

WCB has reiterated that the current inspections are looking for compliance with safety regulations. The WCB has no legislated authority to address staffing levels.  Staffing levels, double bunking, and the direct supervision model can be considered when conducting risk assessments for workplace violence.

The WCB inspectors are conducting a detailed examination of OH&S documents at each correctional centre. They are also meeting with Corrections Officers at each facility.

It is crucial that CO’s who meet with the WCB inspectors provide detailed, specific examples of violations and unsafe working conditions. This was very beneficial during the NFPC Inspection and resulted in exposing a number of safety violations. WCB want to hear from as many Officers as possible and encourage all staff to speak to them about the realities that Corrections Officers must face

The remaining five correctional centres will be inspected in the next few months. The BCGEU will be notified in advance and we will keep you informed.

Dean Purdy- Component 1 Chair
Tony Tessari Component 1st Vice Chair & Local 105 Chair
Brian Campbell Component 2nd Vice Chair & Local 103 Chair
Sheila Moir-Staff Representative OHS
Wiho Papenbrock–Staff Representative