Today, I wrote Senator Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu to share with him my serious concerns regarding his unacceptable and misogynistic comments made during a French language interview with the Quebec TVA based network on February 4, 2020.
While I echo many of the Senator’s concerns on public safety and corrections in general, the Senator’s comments about female Correctional employees demonstrate a distinct disrespect for women, and have the effect of diminishing and denigrating the tireless work of female parole officers and other female employees who take their role in upholding public safety very seriously.
In my letter, I reminded the Senator about our concerns regarding transitioning offenders to the community when there are not always sufficient supports. These concerns include but are not limited to:
1. the elimination of dedicated police liaisons assigned to federal parole offices to provide additional police intelligence and back up;
2. a reduction in the frequency of contact between certain offenders and their parole officers;
3. the elimination of a short term, voluntary residence option for offenders who have nowhere to reside;
4. significant changes to social programs offered to offenders to support their ongoing rehabilitation in the community
As USJE continues the work of defending and representing female and male parole officers across Canada, among other Correctional employees, I will be addressing this issue with the Senator until we have found a satisfactory resolution.
Sincerely,
Stan Stapleton
President,
Union of Safety and Justice Employees