Correctional officers offered cash bonuses and double pay amid staffing shortage
N.L. government and union release details of new incentives
The Newfoundland and Labrador government has announced two new measures in an attempt to keep correctional officers at provincial facilities amid a staffing shortage.
In a press release Tuesday, the Department of Justice and Public Safety said any correctional officer who is required to work on their "first regularly scheduled day of rest" will now make twice their regular hourly rate.
The incentive runs for six months, until the end of February.
The department is also offering a one-time retention bonus of $2,500 to active full-time members. No deadline has been given for when the money will be provided, but the department said payments are currently being arranged.
"These new initiatives provide additional supports for correctional officers who deliver valuable services amidst challenging conditions," Justice Minister John Hogan said in the press release.
The announcement was made jointly with the Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Public and Private Employees, the union that represents correctional officers.
"Our members in corrections work in a very challenging environment; this has been exacerbated by retention and recruitment issues," NAPE president Jerry Earle said in a statement.
"The measures announced today are a positive step towards acknowledging and addressing the important work of our members and the issues they face."
In recent weeks, inmates and lawyers have urged for immediate action to be taken at Her Majesty's Penitentiary, the province's largest prison. Many of the issues that were flagged, including restrictions on visits and recreation, stemmed back to a lack of workers.
Defence lawyers described a staffing crisis so severe that inmates were subject to regular lockdowns and faced difficulty getting medical care.
Judges have given inmates extra credit for time served for living in the conditions of the aging prison. Extreme heat and rodent bites have been cited as reasons for the time cut off their sentences.
The province has not said how many correctional officers are required to fill staffing gaps.
In July, Justice Minister John Hogan announced the province would provide up to $130,000 for 13 seats for Newfoundland and Labrador residents to obtain a correctional officer certificate at the Atlantic Police Academy in Prince Edward Island
The department said 60 applications were received by Aug. 11 and applicants recently underwent fitness testing.
There are 20 new recruits being trained in Labrador this fall, after which the department said they will work at the Labrador Correctional Centre and at Her Majesty's Penitentiary.
