KENORA, Ont. — The Ontario Public Service Employees Union is again calling for more staff at the Kenora District Jail, saying the number of correctional staff in the crowded facility is not keeping pace with the growing inmate population.
President Warren (Smokey) Thomas calls the jail "a human powder keg."
The province recently announced plans to hire 500 new full-time correctional staff across Ontario, but Thomas says it provided no timeline for deployment of more personnel to Kenora.
"The Kenora jail is the most overcrowded institution in the province, with the lowest officer-to-inmate ratio," he said in a statement Wednesday.
Similar to the situation that has been described in the Thunder Bay District Jail, four inmates are sometimes housed in small cells built for one.
According to OPSEU, the Kenora jail has 58 full-time officer positions assigned, but just 37 positions are filled.
Local 719 President Wade Sutherland said 10 casuals fill in, "leaving us 11 officers short, and that doesn't include absences for training, vacation, and illness. We urgently need new hires in Kenora."
The union statement said the commitment to hire hundreds more staff province-wide will help in the long-term, but "boots on the ground in Kenora and around the North" are required immediately.
Thomas also questioned the effects of the staffing shortage on workers' health.
He said some officers are working six days a week, and sometimes do 16-hour or even 24-hour shifts.
"This is not just unsustainable, it's completely unfair to our members and their families."
Thomas called the situation "a recipe for disaster."
Earlier this week, the province announced plans for expansion projects at the Kenora jail as well as the Thunder Bay Correctional Centre to help address overcrowding in advance of the construction of a new jail in Thunder Bay in a few years.
It said Indigenous organizations will have input into the design of the new spaces and other culturally appropriate aspects.
Sutherland responded favourably, saying he was "pleased by the announcement of the infrastructure and the improvements to be done for hiring staff."
The union has also stated it's glad the government is responding to the concerns about jail conditions expressed by Indigenous inmates and leaders, concerns that OPSEU echoes.
