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HomeMy WebLinkAbout1989-1169.Bryans et al.92-12-01"4' ~ ONTARIO EMPLOYES DE LA COURONNE , CROWN EMPLOYEES DE L 'ON TA RIO GRIEVANCE CQMMISSION DE SETTLEMENT REGLEMENT BOARD DES GRIEFS 180 DUNDAS STREET WESTi SUITE 2;00, TORONTO, ONTARIO. MSG 1Z8 TE~-EPHONE/TEL~PHON£: (4~6) 326r~388 ;80, RUE DUNDAS OUEST, BUREAU 2100, TORONTO (ONTARIO). M5G ~Z8 FACSJA'flLE/T~-LC~COP/E ~' (.~ t6) 326- IN THE M~TTER OF ~ ~RBITP~TION Under THE CRO.~N E~PLOYEES COLLECTZVE B~R~NIN~ ~CT BeEore THE GRiEV~CE SETTLEHENT BOARD BETWEEN OPSEU (Bryans et al) ~rievor - aaa - The Crown in Right of Ontario (Ministry of Correctional Services) Employer BEFORE: B. Keller Vice-Chairperson J. Carruthers Member~ H. Roberts Member FOR THE P. ChaPman GRIEVOR Counsel Ryder, Whitaker, Wright & Chapman Barristers & Solicitors FOR THE C. Edwards EMPLOYER Counsel Stringer, Brisbin, Humphrey Barristers & Solicitors HEARIN~ December 18, 1990 BOARD ORDER Attached is the Memorandum of Settlement which the parties agreed would be made an Order of the Board. DATED at Toronto, this 1st day of December, 1992· B. Keller, Vice-Chairperson . Carruthers, Member H. Roberts, Member ( ( GRIEVANCE OF BRYANS, Frederick S., et al (i1 Grievors), Local 301_ Ministry of Correctional Services OPSEU File Numbers 89D849 - 89D859 BRYANS, Frederick S. 89D849K ~uly 31, 1989 DOIRON, Deborah 89D850 August 2, 1989 LAWSON, Donna 89D851 August 3, 1989 DO!RON, William Daniel 89D852 July 31, 19.89 DUSC~ESNE, Denis 89D853 July 31, 1989 FRENCH, Tracy 89D854 July 31, 1989 ~GORDON, Robert O. 89D855 July 31, 1989 KONDRACKI, W. 89D856 July 31, 1989 LAILEY, Grant J. 89D857 July 31, 1989 MORROW, Frank 89D858 July 31, 1989 'MYERS, Michael J. 89D859 July 31, 1989 MINUTES OF THE SPECIAL MEETING TO DISCUSS HEALTH & SAFETY ISSUES RAISED BY THE EVENTS, AND INMATE DISTURBANCE OF JULY 29 & 30, 1989. Date: January 25, 1991 Location: Oshawa Holiday Inn Preeent: · B. Walls (Co-Chairman, Joint HeaJth & Safety Committee); A.C. Dvorak (Co-Chairman, Joint Health & Safety Committee); O. Kertew (Superlntendant); H. Nicholson (Deputy Superintendant); s. (sh t D. Bracciodetta (Member, Joint Health & Safety Committee); O. Duchesne (C.O. 2); B. Gordon (C.O. 2); L Ma[ (C.O. 2); R. Luciflora (Steward); C. Edwards (Counsel for the Ministry, Observer); P. Chapman (Counsel for the Union, Observer) 0 1. Brief Review and Dlecusslon of the Event~ of July 21~ & 30, 1989 Deputy Superintendant Nicholson-r~ the events of the night of July 29 to 30th including the steps that were taken to deal with an inmate disturbarme which occurred that eVening. Superintendant Kerlew added some add~ional facts regarding the information that was available to him when he arriv~ at the jail, and regarding the cr~cussions held with the inmates leading to a resolution of the disturbance. Finally, Sergeant Polya reported on the bnefing that was held at the beginning of the following shift. A number of questiOns were then raised and certain facts were clarified, including the number of staff called in, the order in which staff were contacted, what searches were carried out at the beginning of the following shift, and which of the inmate demands were met by .management. It was agreed by the parties that any con~rns arising out of the handling of the inmate disturbance would be discussed ,later in the meeting, under the heading of one of the agenda items. -2- 2. A Dleeueelon of the Followln9 Matlere ae t[l_ey Relate to t~e Protection1 of ~)mcere' Heattta & Safety a~.~he Whitby Jal! a) Elrle!tnn and Debriefing - Sergeant Polya reported l/~at a debriefing was' carded out by Mr. Taylor after lock up was completed early in the morning of July 30, 1989. Mr. Taylor spoke to staff in the lunch room and actvised them to file Occurrence Reports, but that misconducts would not be laid. Sergeant polya further reported that he briefed the oncoming shift, providing them with a lengthy and detailed account of the disturbance and how it was handled. He further advised staff that there would be a late break'fa,st due to the late hour at which the inmates were locked up. Mr. Duchesne and Mr. Gordon expreSsed concerns about the extent of the debriefing, and particularly the ability to ask questions about the circumstances of the distu~ after the formal debriefing was completed. They also expr~ concerns that officers on other floors were not briefed, but, given rumours about the disturbanco, were very apprehensive about dealing with their Inmates. Superintendant Kerlew expressed his support for. the idea that staff should be told aa much as possible in circumstances like these. After further discussion, the Committee agreed on the following resolution: * where In©ldente occur at the Jail, menagement will t~, If time and clrc'umstancee permit, to get ae much Information ee poulble I~m staff, prior to making decisions about the handling of the Inclcle.nt, and on an ongoing basle; . management will try to report to staff as declelon maldng proceeds; . managemem will try lo debrief all ~ thoroughly and make sure that manegement Is available to. staff to answer their ClUeetlone after an incident. '. b) Searchee - Sergeant Polya reviewed the searche~ that were carried out after the incident, in particular, the units where inmates were involved in a disturbance and were not locked uP were searched on a cell by cell basis before the inmates were let out of their cella for their breakfast. In addition, the yard was searched. Mr. Gordon expre~ ~ concom that searches should have bccn more wide spread, as it was not clear to what extent inmates on other floors were sympathetic to the inmates involved in the disturbance. There was a lengthy discussion of what areas should be searched after an incident of this nature, and of the type of search required. The Comm/ttee eventually agreed on the following resolutions: - the search procedures outlined In Whltby Jail Standing Orders, Section :3, Pages 34-40 will be strictly adhered to; Union reps to the Committee stated that the whole jail shoUld be searched after a disturbance. Management indicated that they may decide to search other areas or the whole jail where warranted, but will not always do so. The Committee agreed however on the following resolution: - If staff feel other areas of the Jail should be searched, they are encouraged to bring their concern to the attention of their Immediate supervisor. ¢) MIs¢onduct~ - There was a lengthy discussion of whether or not misconducts should have been laid after this disturbance, and whether they would be laid after similar k~ciclents in the future. The Union representatives to the Committee felt that miscondtmts should have been laid, as they are a form of protection for the officers. This is particularly so when staff tell inmates at the outset of an incident that they will be held responsible for their actior~. The Union representatives .fe~t that the failure to follow thret~gh with these throats undercut the authority of both management and staff. The~ Union representatives were also concerned that a newspaper report quoted management at the jail as saying that misconducts were not laid because staff could not identify the inmates involved. It was pointed out .that the oocurrerme reports filed by staff detailed the participants in the disturbance, and their specific acts. Superintendant Kerlew stated that the decision to lay misconducts was essentially hie decision. He confirmed that it was not the general, practice of the Ministry or of hie management team not to lay misconducts, but that he concluded that this was an exceptional situation.. He noted that it is the philosophy of the Ministry to try to negotiate a peaceful resolution of such crksturbances, and that a show of force may imperil staff safety. He stated that his objective in the negotiation was to normalize the situation as soon as possibte without any further damage or threat to other inmates or staff. After a lengthy discussion, the Committee was able to agree on the following resolution: - it Is not the MInistry's policy In the normal course of events to not lay misconducts, and In clrcumstancea Ilks these mis¢onducta would generally have been laid; -4- - Management acknowledges the concern of the employees that their authority may have been undermined by this decislon; - In future situations, Management will consider the option of negotiating on the baals.that staff will lay misconducts, but the Superintendent or his designee will then exercise his or her dlscret~on not to Impose discipline; * Management acknowledges that the staff on duty during the disturbance made every effort to Identify the damage and the participants, and that the names and particulars were reported to management by way'of O~currence Reports, d) Poll~e Notifl~etlon_ - The standing orders for the Whitby Jail regarding the hnndilng of inmate clisturbnnces provide that police will be notified when intervention is required. Mr. Kerlew stated that the police were not notified during this disturbance as the situation was resolved without force being required. The Union representatives to the Committee stated their belief that when a disturbance of this magnitude occurs, police should be notified to be on call. e) Equipment - After this inmate disturbance, the concS, tion of the fire equipment was CE,,cussed by the Health & Safety Committee. due to repor~ from the employees involved in the incident that some of the fire hoses could not be tumed on. When the Committee Investigated, the inspector from the Ministry of Government Services responsible for the equipment claimed that it had been recently inspected, and could not explain the malfunctions. The Committee agreed to do monthly inspections of the fire equipment, which are being done. In March, 1990, a full security check was done on all equipment, including mace, dot gear, etc. A three page report was produced, and some replacemer~s and upgrading were carried out as a resulL Mr. Kertew stated that he intends this check to be done once yearly by the security officer. After some discussion about the condition of the equipment at the time of the ~rbance, the Committee agreed on the following resolution, in adcr~ion to the procedures already established by the Health & Safety Committee and the Superintendent: - the annual check of equipment .completed by the ~ecurtty Inspector will result In a report, which will be passed on to the Health & Safety Committee; -5- f) Instltutlo_nal Crisis Intervgntlon Team~. (IClT) -Superintendant Kertew advised the meeting that as far as the Regional Director is concerned there will be no ICIT teams in Metro Region, of which Whitby Jail is a part. In response to a question, Mr. Kerlaw advised that his personal position was that he was supportive of the concept of ICIT teams provided they were property managed. The Union representatives to the Committee indicated that they would like to see funding made available for iClT teams at the Whitby Jail. Mr, Kerlew advised that he has been told funding will not be made available. After further disCussion, the Committee agreed on the following recommendations: . the Committee recommends that Mr.-Parker be approached by the Superintendent on behalf of the Committee asldng that two IClT teama be · reinstated at the Whltby Jail, and that if his decision le negative, he provide reasons for the declelon; - the Committee recommends that the Superintendent place the Issue of ICtT teams~on the Agenda for the next Whitby Jell Employee Relatiorm · Committee Meeting, and ask Mr. Parker to attend the meeting. g) Trell~lng issues Relating to the Absence of ICIT _Teams -The Union representatives to the Committee ir~icatecl that they believed that self-clarence training should continue to be provided at the Whitby Jail, particularly in the absence, of the iCIT teams. They referred specifically to.a program of self-defence training offered by Mr. Marrison, cleating with disturbed inmates,' the application of restraints, removing inmates from close confined areas, etc. Sergeant Polya indicated that this training had been offered as.a pilot project at Whitby funded by the Ministry Staff Training Branch. The program continued un'al last summer, when it was discontinued due to the lack of funding. Superintendent Kerlew indicated that he was not certain whether funds were still available for this training. He further advised .that the 36" baton training is still being done every year, and also that mace is now available to be issued by the Supervisors. After some discussion regarding the need for this~training, the Committee agreed upon the following recommendation: · the Committee recommends that the Superintendent approach the Staff Training Branch on behalf of the Committee to determine the statue of the eelf-defence training program, and to a~k that this training (~ontlnue to be made available to the staff at the Whltby Jail, if the ICIT teams are not re- established. The Superintendent ia to report back to the Committee with reasons if the training la not to be provided. -6- h) R91~ of th~ Committee - The Committee quickly agreed on the following resolution: - where any member of staff or management believes that a Health & Safety Issue Is raised by any disturbance, either party may refer the concem to the Occupational Health & Safety Committee, and It shall be Included on the Agenda for discussion at the Committee's next meeting. I) Standing Order. - Deputy Superintendent Nicholson reported that the 1985 standing orders have been revised, and are awaiting retyping. The s~rx:ling orders were reviewed by a joint committee. Aspects of the standing orders relating to the handling of inmate disturbances have been changed, as for example all references to the ICIT teams have been removed. The Committee agreed upon the following resolution: - once the .revised standing ordem are released, any Health & Safety · concerns Identified by employeea respecting the eectlorm of the ordem de~llng with Inmate d. leturbances should be referred to the atandlng Health & Safety Committee. 3. ~¢ncluslon The Co-Chairmen thanked the members on the Committee for their participation in a productive meeting. They reviewed the contents of the earlier Memorandum of Agreement establ~hing the terms of the meeting, tn particutar, the Superintendam will respond to the recommendations made by the Committee to him within twenty-one, days of receiving a copy of the Minutes of this meeting from the Co-Chairmen. ---. ', '~'~"~ Ministry of Minist(~re des 2oo v,c,~= st,~,1 200, ~ ~a Correctional Se~ices UN~ L~.~3 Se~ices correclionnels Ontario ~y P~ de T~: (416) ~7~1 T~: (416} ~7~1 jam ~ F~: (416) ~ T~; (416) April 9, 1991 MEMORANDUM TO: Special Committee'Members re meeting of January 25/91 Mr. B. Walls, Co-Chairman Mr. A.C. Dvorak, Co-Chairman Mr. H.R. Nicholson, Deputy Supt. Mr. Z. Polya, Shift Supervisor Mr. D. Bracciodieta, Member OH & S Comm. Mr. D. Duchesne, C.O. 2 Mr. R. Gordon, C.O. 2 Mr. L. Malloy, C.O. 2 Mr. R. Lucifora, Steward Ms. C. Edwards, Counsel - Observer M~ P. Chapman, Counsel - Observer 'FROM: Mr. O. Kerlew, Superintendent RE: SUPERINTENDENT'S RESPONSE On April 3, 1991, I received a 'copy of the Minutes of the Special Meeting to discuss Health & Safety issues that was held on January 25, 1991.. These minutes were signed by bo~h Co-chairmen of the Joint ~ealth & Safety Committee, Messrs. Dvorak and Wall,. Ae a condition of Settlement of all the BRYANS et al grievances, i have reviewedthe minutes and prepared aresponse within.the agreed upon time limits. Briefi'~g and Debri~finq Resolutions - Where incidents occur at the jail, management will try, if time and circumstances permit, to get as much 'information as possible from staff prior to .making decisions about the handling of the incident, and on.an ongoing basis. - Management will try to report to staff as decision-making proceeds. - Management will try to debrief all staff thoroughly and make sure that management is available to staff to answer their questions after an incidentl Page 2 Response: These agreed upon procedures will be placed on the agenda of the next Operational Management meeting scheduled for April 24, 1991, for discussion and implementation. Searches Reso[9~ions: - The search procedures outlined in WhitbY Jail Standing Orders, Section 3 - Pages 34 - 40, will be strictly adhered to; - If staff feel other areas of the Jail should be searched, they are encouraged to bring their concern to the attention of their immediate supervisor. ~SPON~E: These agreed upon procedures will be placed on the agenda of the next Operational Management meeting scheduled for April 24/91, for discussion and implementation. ~isconducts ReSolutions: a) It is not the Ministry's policy in-the normal course of events to not lay misconducts, and in circumstances like these, misconducts would generally have been laid; b) Management acknowledges the concern of the employees that their authority may have. been undermined by this decision; c) In future situations, Management will consider the option of negotiating on the basis that staff will lay misconducts, but the Superintendent or his designee will then exercise his .or her' discretion 'not to impose discipline; d) Management acknowledges that the staff on duty during the ~ disturbance made every effort to identify the damage and the participants, and that the names and particulars were reported to management by way of Occurrence Reports. Response: All Managers have already reviewed the aforementioned resolutions and acknowledges (a), (c) and (d), and in the case of (c), .Management will in future situations consider this agreed upon option. Page 3 ~quipment Resolution: The annual check of equipment completed by the Security Inspector will result in a report which will be passed on to the Health and Safety Committee. · Response: Management will ensure that the check of Security equipment completed by the Security Officer-will result in a report which will be passed on to the Health & Safety Committee. This will commence in 1991, and continue every year thereafter. ;nstitutional Crisis IRterv~ntion Teams Recomme~datioRs: - The.Committee recommends that, Mr. Parker b e approached by the Superintendent on behalf of the Committee asking that two ICIT teams be re-instated at the Whitby Jail, and that if'his decision is negative, he provide reasons for the decision. - The Committee recommends that'the Superintendent place the issue of ICIT teams on theagenda for the next Whitby Jail' Employee Relations Committee Meeting and ask Mr. Parker to attend the meeting. ~esDoBse: Mr. Parker was already approached by the Superintendent and did in fact attend'the ERC Meeting of March 15, 1991,~and did participate in discussions with respect to ICIT teams and provided reasons regarding his decision. Training issue~ Felating to the absence of I¢IT team~ recommendation: The Committee recommends that the Superintendent approach the Staff Training Branch on behalf of the committee to determine the status of the self-defence training programme, and to ask that this training continue to be made available'~o~the staff at the Whitby Jail, if the ICIT teams are not.re-established. The Superintendent is to report back to the Committee with reasons if the training is not to be provided. Respo~sp: As agreed,'the. Superintendent approached the Staff Training Branch on behalf of the Committee to determine the status of the self- defence training programme and was advised that that particular pilot project was discontinued due to lack of funds. Page 4 ~ Role 9~ Committee Resolution: Where any member of staff or management believes that a Health & Safety issue is raised by any disturbance, either party may refer the concern to the Occupational Health & Safety Committee, and it shall be included on the agenda for discussion at the Committee's next meeting. Response: As agreed the Superintendent will ensure that· all Health & Safety · issues arising from inmate disturbances will be placed on the agenda of the next Joint Occupational Health and Safety meeting effective immediately. StandSng Order Resolution: Once the revised Standing Orders are released, any Health & Safety concerns identified by employees respecting the sections of the Orders dealing with inmate disturbances should be referred to the Standing Health & Safety Committee. ~esponse: As agreed and effective immediately, the Superintendent will ensure that Standing Order amendments respecting the sections of the Orders dealing with inmate disturbances shall be referred to the Standing Health & Safety Committee. CONCLUSION: I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the participants who made positive contributions which will definitely result tn a better understanding of the issues between the parties. I will, however, repeat that Management's undertaking to implement the agreed upon resolutions is contingent on the Settlement of all the outstanding grievances pertaining to this matter. Yours truly . " O. Kerlew Super intendent OK/jsb