THE CANADIAN PRESS

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TORONTO - The province's labour relations board has declared action by jail guards in two Ontario corrections facilities equates to an illegal strike.

Sources tell The Canadian Press the board has ruled against guards who've created delays in getting prisoners to courthouses.

The issue gained attention after several judges across the province slammed the guards for stalling trials and hearings. One judge suggested he would free prisoners on bail if guards didn't start bringing them on time for court appearances.

The ruling covers Maplehurst Correctional Complex and the Vanier Centre for Women, both in Milton, Ont., and bailiff actions, according to the source.

The board has called the ruling "unprecedented." It orders agents, officials and officers of those facilities to abide by their labour agreement - which was signed earlier this year.

It also calls for the province to meet with the union on staffing, overcrowding and other issues of concern.

The issue was referred to the board by the government. A board official could not be immediately reached for comment.

Ontario Public Service Employees Union spokesman Don Ford said Friday his members are not engaged in an illegal strike.

"We don't have a work-to-rule campaign instituted, not from central union," he said.

"There's been issues for quite some time with regards to overcrowding of inmates, how the inmates are processed (and) the amount of staff we have to do it."

A bail hearing Friday in Brampton, Ont., for a veteran Ontario Provincial Police officer accused of corruption and fraud was delayed more than two hours because Sgt. Michael Rutigliano was the last prisoner brought to the court.

Ontario Court justice of the peace Neil Burgess said it was "reprehensible" and an "ongoing problem" that prisoner transfers are often delayed until noon.

In Kitchener, Ont., several judges have voiced concerns about the delays.

Justice James Ramsay called it a "sham" and threatened to throw guards in jail for "deliberately interfering with the administration of justice."

He ordered Maplehurst superintendent Doug Dalgleish to appear before him to explain the delays, and Dalgleish said the dispute stems from issues about overtime.

Ontario's 5,500 corrections officers were severely criticized by Auditor General James McCarter for taking an average of 32 sick days each year.

At the end of January, corrections workers voted 89 per cent in favour of strike action, mostly due to a government proposal that would have restricted sick time. However, in March members voted 84 per cent in favour of a four-year contract.

-With files from the Waterloo Region Record.