Guard should be provided with 'last opportunity': Arbitrator
A prison guard’s career was abruptly ended after he handed an inmate a set of keys.
The correctional officer (CO), identified as “Paplinskie,” started working at the Ontario Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services in 2008 at a Toronto detention centre. In March 2015, he transferred to the now-closed Brantford jail in southwestern Ontario.
On Nov. 4, Paplinskie worked a day shift in charge of a protective custody unit. An inmate, identified as “A,” showed him a necklace that had two teeth sewn into it.
A claimed the teeth were from his grandfathers and, as an Indigenous inmate, the necklace was culturally significant to him.
The correctional officer wanted to show the necklace to another inmate, whom he said was his uncle, so he asked Paplinskie if he could be escorted to just outside the general population cell block to show his uncle the necklace.
Paplinskie escorted the inmate to interact with the other inmate, and he then escorted him back to his cell without further incident.
Paplinskie testified he felt “empathy” for the First Nations inmate.
“I thought for a brief moment it would be OK.”
On Nov. 5, inmate “C” told another CO that A had previously assaulted him and he lost two teeth as a result.
After a brief investigaion, it was determned that the teeth belonged to C.
During the investigation into his actions the previous day, Paplinskie was candid about what happened and he acknowledged that he had “fucked up.”
Lisa O’Brien, superintendent, conducted an audit of the log book for the week. She found multiple instances of errors made by Paplinskie, in addition to Paplinskie having not reported the movement of the inmate.
When he was confronted, Paplinskie admitted to his mistakes in the log book.
On Dec. 10, Paplinskie worked a shift that covered the laundry room, in which inmate “D” was the sole occupant. Logan Ernst, CO, handed a set of keys, including the laundry room key, to Paplinskie, so he could fetch D and bring him to the methadone treatment area.
As Ernst waited for the transfer, D said, “Look what he gave me,” and showed him the set of keys in his hands. Paplinskie said it was a joke and he immediately took back the keys from D.
Ernst testified he was shocked about the incident.
But Paplinskie testified that he had dropped the key while escorting D and after D laughed, he said, “If you can do a better job, you hold onto it.” The entire exchange lasted about 10 seconds.
On Dec. 12, Ernst filed an incident report.
When he was questioned about the incident, Paplinskie said, “I made a poor judgment call and I apologize not only for what I did but for putting Logan in a position like that.”
He explained that he was stressed in his daily life due to a marriage breakup.
After the investigation, Paplinskie was terminated on March 11, 2016. The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) grieved the termination.
Arbitrator Michael Watters upheld the grievance and said time off the job was enough punishment for the three incidents.
“I recognize that (Paplinskie) cannot be reinstated to a CO position at the Brantford Jail given its recent closure. It is left to the parties to determine the location of the new work site.”
Despite what happened, the employer-employee relationship wasn’t broken, said the arbitrator.
“It is reasonable and appropriate to afford (Paplinskie) a further, and perhaps last, opportunity to demonstrate that he understands what is expected of a CO and to earn back the employer’s trust.”
The errors in the log book were not enough to impose a serious discipline because “it is apparent that some of the entries made by other COs in the log book did not reflect a uniform and consistent practice and were, in some instances, contrary to applicable policy and the standing orders of the Brantford Jail,” said Watters.
“This is an issue that may merit the employer’s attention."
What Paplinskie did was wrong, according to Watters, but it should not have resulted in a termination, especially in light of the turmoil in his family life.
“The handing of the key to inmate D was very likely akin to a spur-of-the-moment reaction. I further determine that the incidents relating to both the necklace and the escort of inmate A resulted, in large part, from (Paplinskie’s) failure to do the necessary follow-up once he was shown the necklace,” said Watters.
Reference: Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services and Ontario Public Service Employees Union. Michael Watters — arbitrator. Roslyn Baichoo for the employer. Richard Blair for the employee. Feb. 28, 2018. 2018 CarswellOnt 3296
