EDMONTON – Alberta sheriffs continue to go above and beyond to keep Albertans safe and continue to see expectations for their services rise. Once again, Alberta sheriffs are expected to do more for less.
Premier Danielle Smith once again delivered an announcement with significant repercussions for these Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) members without meaningful details. Sheriffs are rightfully concerned with what this announcement means for their working conditions.
The latest direction for Alberta sheriffs to patrol the southern border significantly expands their scope, with new responsibilities approaching those of the RCMP. A key difference being that RCMP officers are compensated at a much higher rate than sheriffs.
“Alberta sheriffs are highly trained and are more than skilled enough to deliver on the expanded scope,” says AUPE Vice-president Bobby-Joe Borodey. “The ability to complete the work is not the issue. The issue is the lack of fair compensation for more duties.”
AUPE is calling on the Government of Alberta to fairly compensate sheriffs for their ever-expanding scope of work.
“Sheriffs are already overworked and underpaid,” says Borodey. “We rightfully expect this latest announcement to be followed with more details, including how sheriffs' compensation will rise to match their increased responsibilities.”