Alberta justice system facing paralysis as prison guards’ wildcat strike spreads

The strike that started as a protest against the suspension of two jail guards is now threatening to paralyze much of Alberta's justice system.

Sheriffs who keep order in the province's courtrooms and deliver prisoners to court, along with court reporters, clerks and social workers have joined more than 500 corrections officers in the work stoppage, CBC News reports.

"We're hoping this is very short-lived," said union spokesman Derrick Karbashewski. "We're looking for a voice, we want a voice at the table."

The fresh walkout could force postponement of scheduled court proceedings, CBC News said.

"We believe that we will be able to ensure that the right prisoners, the right individuals, get delivered to the right courts across the province so that the justice system will continue to operate,"deputy solicitor general Tim Grant told CBC News.

[ Related: Some Alberta prison guards scorn back-to-work order ]

Social workers have joined in because they said they share similar issues with prison guards at the Edmonton Remand Centre, where the wildcat strike began on Friday.

"We want to show our solidarity with and their occupational health and safety issues," Shamanthi Cooray, spokeswoman for the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees told CBC News.

The strike began Friday after two guards at the new $580-million remand centre were suspended when they continued to voice concerns about safety at the new high-tech jail where prisoners on trial or awaiting court appearances are housed.

Other staff at the remand centre reacted by not showing up for work and setting up picket lines.

The illegal walkout soon spread to other prisons: the Calgary Remand Centre, Calgary Correctional Centre, Calgary Young Offenders Centre, Edmonton Young Offenders Centre, Lethbridge Correctional Centre, Red Deer Correctional Centre and Peace River Correctional Centre, according to QMI Agency.

The Alberta Labour Relations Board declared the strike illegal after a hearing Saturday but the strikers have defied its back-to-work order.

“This is all at a very significant cost to the taxpayer for what is clearly illegal job action,” Alberta Justice Minister and Solicitor-General Jonathan Denis said in a statement Sunday, according to the Globe and Mail.

The government claimed some officers had gone back to work but union president Guy Smith denied any of his members had crossed picket lines.

"It just sickens me when I hear that because that's absolutely not true; that's a lie," said Smith, according to Postmedia News.

Meanwhile, the affected prisons were being staffed by managers, local police and RCMP officers called in from as far away as Saskatchewan and British Columbia, QMI Agency said. Prisoners were being kept in their cells for much of the day.

[ Related: Union says staff at 7 Alberta jails are on strike, province calls action illegal ]

Safety concerns over the massive Edmonton Remand Centre, which was built to house almost 2,000 prisoners in a new open-concept design that puts them in closer contact with guards, seems to have been just the flashpoint for deep-seated unhappiness among corrections officers.

Union vice-president Glen Scott said guards have been dealing with the impact of staff cuts for some time.

“It’s at the point now when someone has to take a break and leave the unit, some of those units are actually being left unmanned. That’s unacceptable,” Scott told CTV’s Canada AM on Monday. “There’s been an increase in assaults between inmates and on staff."

The suspensions of guards at the remand centre were the "final straw," he said.

The union wants amnesty for the officers originally suspended, plus those who walked out in support, the Globe reported. But the government, noting the wildcat strike is taking place in the middle of contract bargaining, said nothing would happen until officers reported back to work.