The staffing complement at Sarnia Jail is being increased.
Two new correctional officers, a social worker, rehab and rec officers, and mental health nurse have been hired. The volunteer coordinator position is also being made a full-time job.
OPSEU Local 128 represents about 100 workers at the jail.
President Joel Bissonnette said it's a good start to address shortages, and noted the pandemic has highlighted the need for more workers.
"Like many other jobs, COVID has definitely been a struggle for us in terms of how to deal with it," said Bissonnette. "We've been doing our best. The staff at all of the jails, Sarnia included, I want to give them a shout-out for how much they've stepped up and dealt with this pandemic to keep everything under control. The demand definitely has increased, we've had to change how we do business on some levels in order to keep everybody safe."
The hiring of the two correctional officers is part of the Ontario government's commitment of $500 million over five years to hire more than 500 workers and modernize the province's jail infrastructure.
Bissonnette is hopeful they can tap into funding for upgrades at Sarnia jail, noting space is becoming an issue with more staff.
