Keep Belle River ServiceOntario office, MPP says
Natyshak wants it to be in same location and operated by government
Several proponents have submitted proposals to operate the closed ServiceOntario office in Belle River, though Essex MPP Taras Natyshak worries the process will take so long that the convenient current location will be lost.
Natyshak spoke informally last week to Government and Consumer Affairs Minister Tracy MacCharles about his concerns regarding the office — which provides everything from driver’s licences to health insurance cards. The office closed a few weeks ago when the family running it pulled out.
“I delivered the message to the minister that the overwhelming sentiment in Belle River among residents is that we need and deserve and have paid for a ServiceOntario centre in that area,” Natyshak said Monday, noting that the population is growing in Essex County.
“Secondly, I impressed upon her that the way to ensure the service is not disrupted again is to operate it as a public entity rather than what it has been for several years, a private operation with intermittent disruption in service.”
Natyshak, who had previously contacted the ministry by mail, also suggested the government rent the recently closed Ouellette Street office before it’s too late. He says it offers handicap accessibility and a central location.
“I’m concerned that by the time they decide on a new proponent the office that housed the ServiceOntario centre might be gone because it’s up for rent again,” said Natyshak, who has heard that four bids have been submitted to run a Belle River ServiceOntario office.
Harry Malhi, a spokesman with the Ministry of Government and Consumer Affairs, would not confirm how many bids were received since the process is ongoing. But he said the government hopes to have a Belle River ServiceOntario office open by early summer.
Ontario Public Service Employees Union regional vicepresident Len Elliott, who along with Natyshak hosted a meeting in Belle River on the issue two weeks ago with about 100 attendees, also warns against making the facility a privately run affair.
“We think it needs to be publicly operated by OPSEU members,” Elliott said. “When a private person operates it, there’s a middle person making money off the system.”
The province operates 81 ServiceOntario offices, while 206 are privately run. For instance, the ServiceOntario centre in Windsor at 400 City Hall Square East is publicly operated, but the offices at 2437 Dougall Ave. and at 7755 Tecumseh Rd. E. are privately run.
OPSEU members earn more than $20 an hour at ServiceOntario offices, though wages vary according to job title — and are typically lower at privately run locations.
Elliott noted that OPSEU members who handle sensitive information are not only well trained but must go through police checks. As well, he said government run offices do not encounter disruptions of service the way some privately run offices do.
“Citizens in that area pay taxes and they will continue to pay taxes,” Elliott said. “So they expect to have good service in their community.”
We think it needs to be publicly operated by OPSEU members. When a private person operates it, there’s a middle person making money off the system.