Ottawa, ON — The following is a statement from Brian Sauvé, President of the National Police Federation, regarding the RCMP’s Directive regarding facial hair grooming and medical-grade facial respirator masks.
The NPF’s primary objective is to ensure the health and safety of all Members. Our position on this issue is that this Directive is unnecessarily broad and contrary to the RCMP’s human rights obligations which require the RCMP to assess each Member’s fitness for frontline duty on an individual basis, depending on factors such as:
- The nature of the Member’s regular duties;
- The likelihood that those duties will require quick access to a respirator mask;
- The current risk posed by COVID-19 to the detachment community;
- The Member’s individual performance on a respirator mask fit test; and,
- The availability of meaningful administrative work for the
The NPF has contacted the RCMP advocating that they replace the Directive with a policy of individualized assessment in accordance with the factors above. This is an RCMP decision and matter.
About the National Police Federation:
The National Police Federation (NPF) was certified to represent ~20,000 RCMP members serving across Canada and internationally in the summer of 2019. The NPF is the largest police labour relations organization in Canada, the second largest in North America and is the first independent national association to represent RCMP members. The NPF will focus on improving public safety in Canada by negotiating the first-ever Collective Agreement for RCMP officers, and on increasing resources, equipment, training and supports for our members who have been under-funded for far too long. Better resourcing and support for the RCMP will enhance community safety and livability in the communities we serve, large and small, across Canada.
For more information: https://npf-fpn.com/.
Media contact:
Brian Sauvé
President
National Police Federation
[email protected]
T: 604-861-2684