Alberta Crown prosecutors reach agreement with government
Global News
The new agreement was ratified last Friday and was made between the Alberta Crown Attorneys' Association and the justice and finance ministries.
After five months of negotiations, Alberta’s Crown prosecutors have finally ratified an agreement with the Alberta government.
The new agreement was ratified last Friday and was made between the Alberta Crown Attorneys’ Association and the justice and finance ministries.
According to a Thursday morning release, it includes:
“This agreement is an important step forward for the stability of Alberta’s justice system,” justice minister Tyler Shandro said in a statement.
This came when the government of Alberta committed to negotiations in May after Crown prosecutors threatened to walk off the job a month prior.
The Alberta Crown Attorneys’ Association has raised alarms about a crisis in the province’s justice system for years. More than 1,000 court cases involving serious crimes were at risk of falling through the cracks last year because there were simply not enough Crown prosecutors.
Crown prosecutors are also overworked. The association told Global News in April that it isn’t uncommon for crown prosecutors to juggle 30 to 40 trials a week and be working 70 or 80 hours a week.
“Sufficient mental health supports, manageable workloads and competitive compensation are the main priorities of our membership. Each of these priorities has been addressed in this agreement,” said Dallas Sopko, the association’s president.