Corrections officers disciplined over ‘concerning’ online posts
Quips on prison rape and violence quickly reined in by authorities
“Hey buddy did you just use a toothbrush to cut your throat? Let me cuff you and help you with that” — those are the words of one Saskatchewan corrections worker in a social media post.
It was among several responses made by corrections employees to the question, posed on a Facebook group, “Name something you never thought you’d have to say to another person until you got into corrections?”
The Ministry of Justice confirmed on Wednesday that correctional workers at Saskatchewan jails were disciplined — but nobody lost their job — as a result of the string of inappropriate posts, which were made roughly a year ago but have surfaced again more recently and were shared with the Leader-Post.
One response to the question was, “Why don’t I go ask the nurse for a scalpel and we’ll see how fast I can confiscate that tattoo?”
Another employee posted to the group, “Who’s that guy that got raped with a plunger?”
Corrections spokesman Drew Wilby said that the ministry was anonymously tipped off about the postings at the time they were made and that it responded immediately.
“Obviously these are quite concerning for us,” he said.
“And the nature of the posts and the potential identifying information that could be in there related to offenders,” he added.
According to Wilby, the matter was turned over to the province’s investigative services unit and recommendations were made and followed.
“We enacted some discipline that was needed as a result,” he said, adding staff were also made aware of what was and was not appropriate to post on social media.
“Posting information that happens within a facility on a Facebook group or on a social media group, regardless of whether that’s private or not, of course that’s a breach of the social media guidelines as outlined by the government of Saskatchewan.”
Wilby would not speak specifically about what disciplinary measures were taken, but said, “to my knowledge, no one was dismissed of their employment as a result.”
Disciplinary measures for the workers can include a discussion with the employee, having a formal letter put on their file, an unpaid leave from work and termination of employment.
He said the incident was a “coachable moment” in the use of social media for corrections employees.
“We’re all human, I think it would be silly to say we don’t expect something like this to happen again. Obviously we want to equip our staff with the tools that they need and the knowledge that they need to make sure they’re dealing with social media accordingly, especially as it pertains to their jobs,” he said.
Asked what he thought the postings said about the broader sentiments of feelings some corrections workers have toward inmates, Wilby said the employees are working in “difficult circumstances” involving high stress human interactions, but that the comments were “not appropriate at all.”
“I would hope that it was simply a coping mechanism for staff and if that wasn’t the case, and it was an
I would hope that it was simply a coping mechanism for staff and if that wasn’t the case ... that is completely unacceptable.
attempt to belittle an inmate or belittle an offender, of course that is completely unacceptable,” he said.
NDP Justice critic Nicole Sarauer said the comments were concerning.
“Based on these comments, these particular individuals, I don’t think they could be generalized to all corrections workers, but these comments in particular are concerning,” she said, adding she hopes due diligence was done and proper procedure was followed in disciplining the employees.