On Tuesday, June 24th, National President David Neufeld and RVP (CSC Alberta) Zef Ordman visited Grande Cache Institution (GCI) located in Grande Cache, Alberta. This was President Neufeld’s first visit to Grande Cache and to GCI!
The town of Grande Cache is located 435 kilometers west of Edmonton. It is a town of approximately 3,276 people (2021 Census). Grande Cache is surrounded by the Rocky Mountains and is known for its outdoor recreational activities like hiking, skiing and camping.
GCI is standalone medium security facility designed in an open, circular design centred around an inner courtyard. GCI is the workplace to approximately 93 USJE members and is a major employer in the small town.
In 1995, through a 25-year lease agreement with the Province of Alberta, the Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) opened Grande Cache as a medium-security federal institution after it had been a provincial correctional facility (Grande Cache Correctional Centre) since 1985. Currently, GCI can accommodate 243 offenders.
President Neufeld and RVP Ordman were welcomed to GCI by Local President, Sharon Hamilton, and local Treasurer, Balaji Beshakrao, of USJE Local 30011. They were given an extensive tour of the facility that included many stops and an opportunity to speak to USJE members working as teachers, Sentence Management Officers, Carpentry Instructors, in SIS, in Works and Engineering, Food Service Officers, in Mental Health, the Pathways Unit and members of the case management team (Parole Officers, Correctional Program Officers, Indigenous Liaison Officer).
While touring the institution, it was very evident to President Neufeld and RVP Ordman that the USJE members who serve in Grande Cache are very proud of their work and their contributions towards the rehabilitation and reintegration of offenders back into the community. During the many discussions that took place with these front-line members, it was learned that the site does struggle to recruit and retain staff due to its more isolated location. This is particularly problematic for those working in case management when the institution is near or above its accommodation capacity. As of this date, the site was sitting at approximately 312 inmates.
In addition to the challenges identified related to staffing at GCI, workload pressures were pronounced for several groups including Parole Officers and Sentence Management Officers.
President Neufeld and RVP Ordman spent some significant time visiting the kitchen and sharing details regarding USJE’s ongoing Food Service Officer Campaign. It was encouraging to hear that things are going quite well in the kitchen at GCI and that members were aware of the campaign.
During the tour, the union representatives were able to meet with the Deputy Warden, Bill McCormick, and discuss some of the challenges being raised by USJE members. DW McCormick was very open about management’s good working relationships with USJE union representatives and management’s desire to address ongoing recruitment and retention issues at the site. President Neufeld appreciated hearing about some of the site’s plans to fill vacant positions and to help address the current workload challenges being experienced. Some time was also spent talking about the changes experienced in the past year as it relates to Grande Cache’s designation under the Isolated Post and Governmental Housing (IPGH) Directive (losing their Living Cost Differential) and how member’s cost of living has been significantly impacted by this change. President Neufeld intends to follow up on these concerns further through his work on the National Joint Council IPGH Committee as a PSAC representative. The USJE representatives wish to thank DW McCormick for spending time in his busy day to speak with them and supporting the site tour.
At the end of the day, Local 30011 held a special meeting with its members at the Grande Cache Hotel. RVP Ordman and President Neufeld were able to speak to members about USJE’s many ongoing campaigns (ie. Budget Cuts, Presumptive Injury, CR-03/CR-04 Campaign), collective bargaining, staffing, Phoenix pay issues and more. Time was also spent discussing the importance of building a strong local and having an open question/answer period for the members.
President Neufeld and RVP Ordman want to thank Local President, Sharon Hamilton, for setting up today’s tour and for bringing the membership together for the evening dinner engagement meeting.
