I’m hearing a lot of lip service from the government side. In the meantime, morale continues to decline because experienced conservation officers are leaving the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry to take jobs where their pay actually matches their training and experience.

Conservation officers are paid up to $31,000 less than OPP officers, despite being held to the same standards of training; they have the same levels of risk and the responsibility to carry sidearms. With a stroke of the pen, the government could provide the reclassification of these workers that these workers have long deserved.

Will this government recognize that the training and duties of conservation officers far exceed their compensation and commit to reclassification?