Alberta sheriffs say extra training, more pay needed to become police

Organizations speaking for sheriffs in Alberta say they see hurdles and have unanswered questions about how 600 in their ranks could become provincial police officers.

Bobby-Joe Borodey, vice-president of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees, which represents more than 700 sheriffs, says they are currently lacking enough workers to protect courthouses and transport inmates.

"We have a shortage of workers in public-sector jobs, and that's just, quite frankly, because the pay doesn't match the level of work that they do," she said.

Retraining hundreds of employees to be police officers will put them in jobs that require more skills and expose them to higher levels of risk, Borodey said. Their pay should reflect those factors, she said.

Public Safety and Emergency Services Minister Mike Ellis on Monday tabled a bill that would empower the government to create a Crown policing agency, which could operate a police service as an alternative to the RCMP for community policing.

Some municipalities are frustrated with the rising costs of RCMP services and what they see as a lack of response, or delayed service, due to high staff vacancy rates.

In response, Alberta RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Troy Savinkoff said Tuesday in a statement the organization is "willing to work with our partners on how best to meet the needs of communities we serve and maintain public safety and confidence."

In a news release on Wednesday, the Alberta Sheriffs Branch Officers Association president Don Tornwe says sheriffs would need "extensive training" to become police officers, including lessons in how to conduct criminal investigations, traffic enforcement and navigate high-stress situations.

The association was formed last year, "with the purpose of uniting sheriffs in Alberta," according to its website. It's aiming to become a recognized union.

It's unclear how many workers are in sheriff-type roles for the government. Ellis says at least 1,200 people, and AUPE says it has 738 members classified in sheriff roles, including fish and wildlife officers and highway patrol.

In an interview Wednesday, Tornwe says the province didn't consult sheriffs about the plan to transition some of them into policing. He wants to know how the government will decide which employees are suitable for police work.

The sheriffs who would remain are concerned about losing experienced colleagues, and want to know whether Ellis's ministry will replace those employees.

"Maintaining the Alberta Sheriffs as a cohesive, unified force is the best option for preserving the effectiveness of law enforcement in the province," the sheriffs' association's news release said.

Neither Ellis nor his staff has answered questions about plans for the size of the sheriffs' service.