Customs officers resume walkouts over right to carry guns

SARNIA, Ont. -- In yet another round of pro-*test*-('")s, Canada Customs officers walked away from their post at the Sarnia, Ont.-Port Huron border because the Canadian government continues to deny them firearms.
Truckers and car drivers trying to enter Canada were delayed for several hours yesterday at the Blue Water Bridge when officers resumed their ongoing dispute with the feds over the right to carry guns on the job.

Most of the officers returned to work at 5 p.m.

The walkout coincided with the release of a study conducted on behalf of the officers' Customs Excise Union, which found that front-line customs workers -- like police officers -- need to carry weapons because of increasing dangerous situations and the risk of encountering armed terrorists at the border.

The study, conducted by private Ottawa-based security company Northgate Group, continues by stating that the Canada-U.S. border is porous and suggests armed mobile patrols to secure it.
"From assaults, to intimidation to being take hostage, these officers are faced with a daily risk to their lives … exacerbated by the unpredictability of human behaviour," the study states.

The union says it's frustrated with the government's response on the issue, especially since the feds' own reports -- including a Canadian Senate report released last summer -- also recommended border agents carry weapons.

In November, customs officers created traffic chaos at several border crossings in Southern Ontario when they staged a series of similar strikes over the gun issue.

"Our members exercised this right in part because they don't trust the armed and dangerous lookout system, which is critically flawed in that it repeatedly fails to identify armed and dangerous felons as such," Ron Moran, national president of the Customs Excise Union, said at the time.

Days before, Moran created a firestorm when, in -*test*-('")ified before the Standing Senate Committee on National Security and Defence, he accused CBSA management of ignoring objections from front-line customs officers in introducing a "widespread practice of admitting individuals into Canada even after they are caught trying to smuggle guns or drugs."

The Ontario Trucking Association has been urging the government to resolve the issue as soon as possible.

"Much of what has been accomplished since Sept. 11 to keep the border functioning will be undone if we allow these types of situations to continue. Your officials must take immediate action to put in place whatever plans are required to end the current job action and to prevent another such work stoppage at the border," OTA President David Bradley wrote in a letter to Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness Anne McLellan last fall.

Bradley is recommending carriers and owner-ops charge their customers for delays


He's not Packin': Canada Customs officers want
more than just contraband detectors

They need personal protection, I know they are stricter in Canada than in the US but it's only a fag papers distance away.

As a US CBP Officer (formerly US Customs), I agree completely with Canada Customs request to carry weapons. Having worked the Canada/US border, I know what they are faced with every day and ability to carry weapons is a deterrent to anyone attempting to illegally cross the border. They deserve the right to protect themselves!

Larry

Welcome to the forums Larry

Hey larry, there are one set of uscb officers that arnt armed and thats those based here in Dublin Airport, Ireland. Anywho did you join as a result of my post on the yahoo group?

Even though some here disagreee with me,

Ive said it before, and I will say it again. Anyone who takes an unarmed LE job is a fool.

We've got CBP Officers all over the world now. There are pre-clearance operations in Ireland, Canada, and the Caribbean. Also have the Container Security Initiative, which places CBP Officers at most of the major seaports in the world to screen containers before they arrive in the States.

(I'm not Larry, but I joined from your post in the Yahoo group.)

Swet welcome, yea ts dead handy pre-clearing immigration before even getting on the palne save all the hassle the other end. See and talk to a few CBP officer around dublin airport and even had to arrest people for them etc. Ah its fun being me

I've never had any interest in working one of those pre-clearance spots. I think finding stuff and then having to pass the enforcement off to another agency because you're in a foreign country would get old very quickly.

Hehehe and we get all the glory too. Plus it involves uprooting and moving to another country as well

Oh, I dunno about the moving bit. There are some definite perks to going on an international assignment for the government. The primary one is that we're compensated very well. A secondary one would be that diplomatic passport!

The diplomatic passport ot a certain extent your still not allowed carry your side arm

True. And it's not like the movies -- doing whatever you please without any consequences. The agency would fire us in a heartbeat and quickly revoke immunity.

Yup the only real perk or diplo passport is A. Dont get searched in Customs here and B. You can park your car wherever you want without getting a ticket