Safety concerns raised for tenants, workers in Greater Sudbury Housing

Safety concerns for maintenance workers The union representing maintenance workers is voicing safety concerns in Sudbury housing buildings.

The union representing maintenance workers in social housing buildings in Sudbury is voicing concern for workers and tenants.

CUPE Local 4705 said maintenance workers have been subject to various forms of harassment and have witnessed drug use and weapons in the facilities.

Bryan Keith, president of CUPE Local 4705, said every unit has its own challenges, but buildings on Louis Street and Bruce Avenue have been most problematic to date.

“Unfortunately there’s a lot of overdoses. Some of our staff have unfortunately found people in stairwells, that they’ve had to administer help with,” Keith said.

“It’s escalated to the point where even walking through the grounds and you’re getting stuff thrown at you from the balconies, for instance, has caused a huge safety concern.”

He said it’s concerning not only for workers, but for the tenants and visitors.

“Nobody feels all that safe anymore going to some of these buildings,” he said.

Colin Mckerral, a tenant at Louis Street, said he feels unsafe in his building and has been a longstanding advocate for increasing safety. He said he’s seen multiple instances of violence and drug use.

“It’s supposed to be a secure building. None of it is secured,” he said.

He said he understands why workers would feel unsafe.

“I have seen them go into units where people are using, they’re violent,” he said.

“People have thrown rocks at the workers, they’ve tossed stuff off the balconies.”

He said it’s unsafe for tenants, as well.

“The good tenants are the ones that are suffering in every aspect,” Mckerral said.

“The elderly are scared to come out, the good tenants are scared to come out.”

Greater Sudbury, which manages Sudbury Housing, said the health and safety of its workers is a top priority. City worker Barb Dubois said all staff are equipped with cellphones to communicate in the event of emergency.

She said the city underwent an audit of all social housing to determine any weaknesses in security. Since then, she said they’ve increased security measures in the buildings.

“We’re in the process of putting security cameras in all the stairwells, we increased the lighting, we added a larger video surveillance room and we put someone on there monitoring video surveillance 24/7,” said Dubois.

She said that the city has highlighted and informed its staff of areas of concern and that staff are encouraged to attend those buildings in pairs.

However Keith said, for maintenance workers, pairing up isn’t always possible.

“In some cases they’re going by themselves after-hours to work on an issue,” he said.

“They may not be very safe doing so, but the job has got to get done, so they’re putting their own safety at risk.”

He said he is hopeful that the union can collaborate with the city to come up with a solution. He said at a recent council meeting, the city approved four municipal law enforcement officers to switch to permanent full-time status, which he hopes might help.