Union Says B.C. Conservation Officers Are Chronically Understaffed

Hot on the heels of the controversy facing the BC government, the BC Government and Service Employees’ Union (BCGEU) has released two reports focused on the conservation officer service (COS) in the province.

The reports show that the COS is chronically understaffed, resulting in unsafe working conditions for its officers. A 2011 report by then-chief conservation officer Edward Illi states that the single officer posts employed by the provincial government appear to contravene the Workers Compensation Act and the Canada Labour Code and “exposes officers and the government to risk.” The report also states that the COS “does not have adequate uniformed officers deployed throughout B.C.” and calls for an increase of 40 conservation officers in the short and medium term to achieve a “minimum deployable strength.”

Photo Credit: BC Gov/Flickr

Another report by the Society of B.C. Conservation Officers assesses staffing levels from 2001 to 2012 and notes that the service lost 42 field officers in that time, a 32 per cent reduction in field staff. The report also chronicles a 70 per cent increase in problem wildlife calls and a 56 per cent increase in poaching and polluting calls since 2001.

According to BCGEU president Stephanie Smith, the government has known since 2011 that understaffing has created an unsafe work environment for officers.

“Their response has been to consolidate some single officer posts, while leaving large areas like Revelstoke without a local conservation officer,” said Smith in a statement. “There are still nine single officer posts and 15 CO vacancies in a dangerously understaffed conservation officer service. This is unacceptable and clearly shows that the government must hire more officers to protect our members and the people of British Columbia.”

Recently, Port Hardy conservation officer Bryce Casavant was suspended without pay for refusing to put down two bear cubs. The Ministry of Environment backtracked on that decision following an outpouring of support from the public and decided to suspend him with pay following a full investigation into his actions. Casavant is the sole officer posted in Port Hardy.