The following was provided to us by Lennox Neufeld, daughter of USJE National President, David Neufeld, and Matthew Bowen, son of Regional Vice-President Julie Bowen.
Lennox Neufeld – Shadowing USJE National President
Hello. I’m Lennox and I flew all the way to Ottawa to find out what my dad does for work!
Day 1
The first thing I did was go to the National Headquarters of the Correctional Service of Canada to meet with the Commissioner, Talal Dakalbab. When I met with Talal, I learned that he tries to focus on what his employees are doing well and have them see the value of their work. He also mentioned that his employees have a huge impact on public safety. The Commissioner mentioned he is proud to hold the position of Commissioner and representing the organization. The Commissioner is responsible for the management of federal corrections in Canada, a key component of the criminal justice system.
Later in the afternoon, I went to Parliament Hill to meet with my Member of Parliament, Colin Reynolds. My dad often meets with MPs to talk about his members’ work and inform them about issues that are important for front-line employees. MP Reynolds met us in Parliament and gave us a tour of the Parliament floor. He also gave us a quick look into the Conservative lobby area which is where the Conservative MPs get ready for Question Period. After the tour, MP Reynolds had to get ready for Question Period himself. Then, my dad and I stayed to watch Question Period. I found this very different than my experience at the Legislature in Winnipeg. The issues discussed were around affordability, tariffs and connections the Prime Minister is making with Europe. I found there was a lot of heckling in Question Period between the government and the opposition parties. I was in shock to see that they were nearly yelling at each other and making huge insults. At the end of the debates, Elizabeth May made a Point of Order to stop the heckling and called it immature. I thought this was my favourite part.
Day 2
I woke up quite early and I was back at work. I went straight to a meeting at 9 AM. This meeting was the Board of Directors at the Public Service Alliance of Canada building. This meeting went until 12 PM. In this meeting, they talked about issues around strikes, toolboxes for union leadership and much more. After that, it was lunch time for me. I then had to get ready to travel back home while my dad stays to keep working.
Now you have learned a little bit about what my dad as National President of USJE does for work!
Matthew Bowen – Shadowing Regional Vice-President Julie Bowen
Hey, I’m Matthew, and it’s Take Your Kid to Work Day.
Today I get to follow my mom, who works for a federal labour union that represents the people working behind the scenes at Corrections Canada.
For a long time, my mom worked at Grand Valley Prison, but this summer, she was elected to represent CSC workers across Ontario as the regional vice-president with the Union of Safety and Justice Employees.
I got to take the train by myself to Kingston yesterday to join my mom, who was already there for meetings. I am joining my mom for a tour at regional headquarters (RHQ) since the local there is having an annual general meeting today. My mom needs to run the local’s elections to make sure everything is fair.
Attending AGMs also gives her the chance to talk with her members and hear what’s going on where they work. The results of the election were two presidents, one vice-president, and one secretary-treasurer. And we talked about the strike and the importance of a strong strike vote. I learned that everyone has to work together in order for the union to work. And it’s important for her to visit RHQ and all these prisons for the reason being, every member is important.
Unfortunately, the trip to the prison got cancelled due to concerns of me being a minor, so we had a private tour of the Canada’s Penitentiary Museum through Mom’s connections. I learned so much about corrections while there; that in order for correctional officers to adapt, they have to look at what prisoners are doing in the prisons that is breaking through the systems that they had in place. I even got to see the model of Grand Valley Institution that my mom worked at as a correctional officer and later as a program officer before joining USJE.
Thanks for coming along with me today while I learn more about my mom’s job and about how corrections work in Canada.
Voiceover, Matthew Bowen: