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"This issue was significant enough that government felt it warranted the time and expense of a study. Why are they now dragging their feet on implementing the recommendations that were made?" — Jason MacLean, NSGEU President
Halifax (15 Nov. 2016) — After a frightening incident at the Halifax provincial courts on November 14, Deputy Sheriffs and their union representatives are calling on government to finally act on the many outstanding recommendations made in a recent safety assessment.
Provincial risk assessment did not consider safety in high-profile cases
"Deputy Sheriffs responded very well to a dangerous situation that could have gotten out of hand very easily," said Jason MacLean, President of the Nova Scotia Government and General Employees' Union (NSGEU/NUPGE).
"We are told that a risk assessment was conducted by management, but that assessment clearly failed to anticipate the heightened risks that came along with such a high-profile case, which put both our members and members of the public in harm's way," MacLean said.
One member was injured, received medical treatment and is off the job as the result of yesterday's incident.
Workplace violence assessment completed 18 months ago, many recomendations outstanding
There were a total of 51 recommendations designed to mitigate significant risks to both the public and Deputy Sheriffs made in the Beaton Report, which was commissioned by the provincial Liberal government in July 2015 to assess violence in the workplace. Now, almost 18 months later, many of those 51 recommendations have still not been implemented.
"This issue was significant enough that government felt it warranted the time and expense of a study. Why are they now dragging their feet on implementing the recommendations that were made?" asked MacLean.
"It seems that this is yet another study that government plans to pay for and leave sitting on the shelf," MacLean said.
MacLean is once again calling on government to honour their commitment to implement the recommendations of the Beaton Report in a timely manner, to ensure public safety.
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 370,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE