First and foremost, USJE wishes to express its deepest condolences and most heartfelt solidarity with the community of James Smith Cree Nation. The pain and sorrow they experience is not only shared by the entire USJE membership, it also resonates far and wide across Canada. Our thoughts and prayers go to them and to the victims.
The members of our union work tirelessly to keep Canadians safe. To accomplish this duty, our members constantly face up to immense moral and ethical responsibilities. They perform their job selflessly without a thought to the pernicious cumulative impact that job can have on their well-being. At USJE, we wish to reiterate just how well-placed our trust in our members is. Our support and respect for our members is unwavering.
Thoughts go to our CSC members, the Parole Officer(s) that have had care and control of this case. We also acknowledge the others that will likely be impacted; Parole Officer Supervisors, Program Officers, Indigenous Liaison Officers and Community Employment Coordinators and all those that would have assisted in the reintegration effort surrounding this case.
Further, we cannot forget about CSC members that are connected to this case, whether through reviewing a file, sharing information, providing coverage, preparing a warrant or supporting a colleague through dialogue. Your pain matters too.
Additionally, we recognize that USJE members from other departments will also be affected. PBC members that have personal experience with the development of this file collated information, prepared the Board review, sat in on hearings and provided support and review of the documents that resulted in the offender’s movement in and out of the community.
RCMP members worked overtime to support the investigation, follow-up and the manhunt. Anyone that works in Public Safety will recognize the inherent stressful impact of this event – many will recognize near misses and tragic situations they have personally dealt with in the past.
Please use the services that are made available to you. Be in touch with co-workers to make sure they are OK, engage in activities that bring you peace and enjoyment – don’t lose yourself in this job.
The local Presidents and the regional Vice-Presidents covering our CSC, RCMP and PBC members in Saskatchewan are making sure the local members are supported. Please feel to reach out if you are anyone you know wishes to talk.