Safety in Jeopardy

Workforce Adjustments are already affecting hundreds of federal public safety personnel and the essential services they provide. USJE is committed to pushing back against cuts that harm both workers and the public they serve.

choppin hands - edited 72dpi

choppin hands - edited 72dpi

Safety in Jeopardy

Workforce Adjustments are already affecting hundreds of federal public safety personnel and the essential services they provide. USJE is committed to pushing back against cuts that harm both workers and the public they serve.

Current Impact

1036

Members
already affected

33%

Departments and agencies
affected so far

Behind these numbers are front-line employees, communities, and public safety.

What’s At Stake

Cuts to public safety and justice don’t happen in isolation. When federal public safety jobs are eliminated, the impacts are real — and they affect communities across Canada.

Public safety and emergency preparedness

Federal public safety personnel oversee elaborate emergency prepared plans, continuously assess the risk of federal offenders, support crucial administrative functions within the RCMP and the federal court system, as well as protect the privacy and security of Canadians and their access to information.

RCMP operations and national coordination

Across more than 700 RCMP detachments, federal public safety workers provide essential operational and administrative expertise. At regional and national levels, they support local, national, and international public safety priorities — work that cannot simply be absorbed elsewhere when positions are cut.

Correctional Service Canada (CSC)

Thousands of public safety personnel work directly with federal offenders or support supervision, rehabilitation, education, and reintegration — both during incarceration and on conditional release in the community. Staffing reductions strain these systems and increase risks inside institutions and in communities.

Justice, prosecutions, and court administration

Within federal Prosecutions, Court Administration Services, and the Department of Justice, public safety personnel support complex legal cases and the day-to-day administration of justice. Cuts in these areas delay proceedings and weaken the justice system Canadians depend on.

These cuts don’t just affect jobs — they affect public safety, access to justice, and community well-being across Canada.

Featured Media

“We are calling on the Correctional Service of
Canada to halt its plans to reduce the number of
correctional program officers and related supports.”

At a news conference in Ottawa, the Union of Safety and Justice Employees (USJE) presents a new report outlining the challenges facing correctional officers and the impact these challenges have on the federal correctional system’s rehabilitation capacity.

Speaking with reporters are David Neufeld, president of the USJE, Patrick Ménard, the union’s vice-president for Quebec, and Rosemary Ricciardelli, research chair in safety, security, and wellness at Memorial University of Newfoundland. (March 25, 2026)

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