CIU National President Jean-Pierre Fortin, accompanied by BC Southern Branch President Dan Sullivan, has returned to Ottawa following a trip to British Columbia yesterday for a special meeting with members. He assured the full support of the National Union to Sister Lori Bowcock who was injured in the shooting and to all members assigned to the Peace Arch crossing.

Following the meeting with more than 30 members who actually were part of the events, the National President can confirm that Sister Bowcock, although seriously injured in the shooting, is expected to make a full recovery. As they go forward, Sister Bowcock, her family and co-workers can count on the full support of CIU and its members.

The National President also confirmed that the deceased gunman has been identified. After conflicting factual reports from CBSA, it was determined that this was an intentional shooting of one of our members followed by a suicide. Branch members were also assured that the CIU will work closely with them in an effort to identify and resolve any and all workplace safety issues.

The CIU is sincerely appreciative of the support shown to Sister Bowcock and its members from others in the law enforcement community and from Canadians in general.

Yesterday afternoon, a member of the Customs and Immigration Union who was working as a Front-line Border Services Officer was shot and seriously injured while performing her duties at the Douglas port of entry in British Columbia. Jean-Pierre Fortin, National President of the Customs and Immigration Union, offered the support of the entire CIU membership to their injured colleague.

“The thoughts of our membership are with our Sister and her family at this terrible time. This incident reminds us all that as law enforcement officers serving Canadians, the personal safety risk our members undertake is real each and every time they go on shift because dealing with the unknown is part of their job.”

“I want to thank Canadians for the tremendous outpouring of support they have offered to our Sister and her colleagues at Douglas and in the Pacific Region. In the days to come, we will closely examine the circumstances that led to this tragic event. Our priority now is to ensure the full recovery of our injured Sister and the welfare and safety of all our members whose courage and dedication help keep our country safe.”

Unions representing workers in Canadian prisons, at the borders, in the federal justice system, and serving veterans say the federal government has some explaining – and listening – to do when it comes to how cuts are putting public safety at risk.

The leaders of the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers (UCCO-SACC-CSN), the Union of Solicitor General Employees (USGE), the Customs and Immigration Union (CIU), the Union of Veterans Affairs Employees (UVAE) and the Association des membres de la Police Montée du Québec (AMPMQ), which together represent more than 33,000 workers in the field of public safety, are teaming up to organize a forum on public safety in Ottawa this fall. Public Safety Minister Vic Toews has declined an invitation to attend.

“In the face of so little information from the government, we feel it is our responsibility to share what we are learning,” said UCCO-SACC-CSN president Pierre Mallette, whose members serve as correctional officers in federal penitentiaries across the country. “It is unfortunate that the minister chose not to consult us before imposing these cuts. Now we hope he’ll at least listen to our concerns about what they will mean,” he added.

USGE president John Edmunds says that because of the cuts, parole officers working in federal penitentiaries who are already stretched beyond capacity now have to take on even bigger caseloads. In maximum security institutions, for example, caseloads have increased from 25 to 30 offenders for each parole officer.

“This makes no sense and will inevitably put our members and community safety at risk,” he said.

Mallette says his members and the public are at risk because of cuts that will leave federal penitentiaries even more overcrowded.

“We know from experience that when prison living conditions are deteriorating, we no longer fulfill our rehabilitation mandate, said Pierre Mallette. That’s when we see a revolving door syndrome in federal prisons: the inmates leave the prison, go on committing other crimes and go right back in,” said Mallette. We fear that the federal government cuts will only make this situation worse.”

“At the borders we are seeing big cuts to intelligence work, including sections such as the money laundering unit. What we don’t know is how the government plans to make up for this,” said CIU president Jean-Pierre Fortin.

“When it comes to gun control, illegal drugs and national security the border is Canada’s first line of defence,” said Fortin. “How can the federal government possibly defend decisions to cut back on intelligence work at the borders given the recent shooting sprees in Toronto and Montreal?”

UVAE president Yvan Thauvette said his members are shocked that the government is willing to send soldiers to war but is abdicating its responsibility to provide them the services they need when they return.

“Keeping Canadians safe means treating those who make the biggest sacrifices with respect. Instead, we are seeing services to veterans being cut,” he said.

AMPMQ president Gaetan Delisle says all of the public safety cuts – not just those at the RCMP, impact on the work officers do.

“The Federal Government seems to have abandonned its responsibilities related to public safety. We do not know what will be the impact on public safety,” said Delisle.

The union leaders say they hope the minister will reconsider his decision and agree to attend the forum.

“In the meantime, we are sitting down together to map out how to make this public safety forum as informative as possible,” said Mallette.