Probation and Parole Officer

Fonction publique de l'Ontario; Sarnia; On-site; CAD 54,000 - 85,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Career growth

Education programs

Benefits package

Flexible work arrangements

Modern workplace

Job summary

The Ontario Public Service, through the Ministry of the Solicitor General, invites qualified applicants for Probation and Parole Officers. You will provide probation and parole services, conduct assessments, and support offender rehabilitation in a diverse team.

Mandatory education or equivalent experience plus counseling and data collection skills are required. The role offers a comprehensive benefits package and opportunities for professional growth.

Qualifications

• Degree in one of the listed disciplines or equivalent experience in social services/correctional settings (5+ years).
• Demonstrated counselling and motivational interviewing experience.
• Strong relationship-building and case-management skills.
• Ability to gather data for comprehensive assessments.
• Ability to interpret offender risk and needs based on assessments.

Responsibilities

• Provide probation, parole and conditional sentence services to adult offenders.
• Investigate and prepare court/board-ordered reports to support decisions.
• Monitor and enforce conditions to enhance community safety.
• Develop offender-focused case-management plans addressing needs.
• Deliver structured interventions and cognitive-behavioural counselling.

Education

Bachelor's degree in social work/psychology/sociology/criminology

Job description

Apply By: Monday, September 28, 2026 11:59 pm EDT

$1,506.53 - $1,861.87 Per week* *Indicates the salary listed as per the OPSEU Collective Agreement.

If you have not completed the Ministry's Probation and Parole Officer basic training program and the experience requirement, you will be hired in the Probation Officer (PO1) salary range ($1,182.40 - $1,541.00) per week

As public servants working in the Ministry of the Solicitor General, you will lead with integrity, demonstrate professionalism, champion inclusion, diversity, equity, accessibility and human rights, and strive for excellence. Probation and Parole Officers are entrusted by our fellow citizens to play a pivotal role in the justice sector, promoting community and victim safety through the assessment and effective case management of offenders on community supervision.

While supporting public safety, ensuring offender accountability, and enforcing compliance, Probation and Parole Officers are tasked with assisting vulnerable offenders who face significant barriers and require guidance navigating the challenges of living with issues such as mental health, addictions, historical and ongoing systemic discrimination (e.g., racism) and related barriers such as poverty, transiency and historical/intergenerational trauma. They are committed to evidence-based practice in response to the changing needs of diverse communities.

Probation and Parole Officers are honest, accountable, caring, ethical, respectful, inclusive, and are passionate about reducing recidivism to support victim and community safety.

This is an exciting and intrinsically rewarding career within the Ontario Public Service where you can assist the offender population in making significant changes in their lives.

Note: This competition may be used to create an eligibility list of qualified candidates to fill upcoming opportunities within the next 14 months following the closing date of the job ad posting.

About the job

Working as part of a diverse and dynamic team, you will:

• Provide probation, parole and conditional sentence services to adult offenders
• Investigate and gather information to prepare reports ordered by the Courts and the Ontario Parole Board to support sentencing and parole decisions
• Enhance community safety by monitoring and enforcing conditions of court orders
• Assess criminogenic and other risk and needs and develop and implement offender case management plans to address those needs
• Help offenders to make positive changes by guiding and supporting their efforts through meaningful interventions, skills building, cognitive-behavioural counselling, referrals, programming and motivational interviewing
• Liaise with victims and build relationships with diverse criminal justice system partners and stakeholders such as police, courts and community agencies (including Indigenous communities and organizations)

What you bring to the team

Mandatory requirements

• Degree (from an institution authorized by the province to grant degrees) in one of the following disciplines: social work, psychology, sociology, and criminology OR a degree (from an institution authorized by the province to grant degrees) and experience greater than five years in total, in a social services or correctional organization, in a role(s) that involves the formal assessment of human behaviour and the application of structured interventions aimed at supporting the changing of human behaviour.

Applied social work expertise:

• Demonstrated counselling and motivational interviewing experience
• Relationship building skills to counsel, provide offenders with guidance and support
• Demonstrated ability to develop, implement, monitor, update and evaluate offender-focused case management
• Experience in the delivery of structured individual and group interventions
• Demonstrated ability to effectively gather data to support the completion of a comprehensive assessment
• Demonstrated ability to interpret and analyze assessment information gathered through identification of offender risk, need and responsivity

Strong decision-making expertise:

• Demonstrated use of professional discretion to make timely and appropriate decisions that are aligned with offender supervision strategies, individual needs, critical analysis, policy and legislation
• Demonstrated ability to set clear and consistent expectations for accountability or to initiate corrective action to address risk mitigation and offender rehabilitation

Communication and interpersonal skills:

• Demonstrated interpersonal skills to contribute to a respectful workplace that values human rights, diversity, inclusion and equity
• Skills and ability to ensure completion of the administrative components of case management (including documentation, data entry, meeting deadlines and managing multiple priorities)
• Verbal communication skills to work effectively with colleagues, offenders, victims, stakeholders and justice partners with diverse needs and perspectives
• Demonstrated ability to gather and present information verbally and in writing in a clear, accurate, concise and professional manner

How we support diversity, inclusion and accessibility

We are building an inclusive workforce that reflects the communities we serve. We encourage everyone interested in working with us to apply, including people with disabilities, Indigenous, Black and racialized individuals, as well as people from all ethnicities, cultures, sexual orientations, gender identities and gender expressions.

Our hiring process is accessible, consistent with Ontario's Human Rights Code and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005. We are working to prevent and remove barriers in our hiring processes and can offer accommodation to address specific needs related to Code-protected grounds such as disability, family status and religion. For more information about accommodation during the hiring process please contact us.

Learn more about the work the OPS is doing to create an inclusive, anti-racist, accessible and diverse workplace:

• diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives
• accessibility
• Anti-Racism Policy

What we offer

The Ontario Public Service is one of Ontario's largest employers. Employees work for 29 ministries, with offices in more than 70 cities across the province.

We offer:

• a career that can grow across ministries and job functions
• flexible learning and developmental opportunities, including education and mentorship programs
• a comprehensive compensation and benefits package
• comprehensive benefits that look after your holistic wellness needs
• base salary that aligns to market trends with performance-based pay and scheduled salary progression
• tailored work arrangements, including opportunities like flex hours, self-funded leave and more
• a modern, friendly and accessible physical work environment

Additional information:

Apply by:

Monday, September 28, 2026 11:59 pm EDT

• 1 English Permanent, 720 Christina St N, Sarnia, West Region, Vulnerable Sector Check, Driver's License History
• About security checks:A criminal or other federal offence record does not automatically disqualify you from the position. We consider each situation based on the position's responsibilities.If a check is needed and you've lived outside of Canada in the past 5 years for 6 or more months in a row, or if you are not a Canadian resident, you'll need to provide an out-of-country police clearance certificate from the country you lived in.Employment screening checks are only reviewed and evaluated by the Transition and Security Office, which also maintains them and keeps them strictly confidential.
• Less qualified applicants may be considered on an underfill basis.
• OPS employees are required to quote their WIN EMPLOYEE ID number when applying.

Language requirements and assessment: All external Ontario Public Service (OPS) job ads are posted in English and French. Check the "position(s) language" section at the top of each job ad for the language requirements. For all roles, candidates are assessed in English, the business language of the OPS. If the position is bilingual (English/French), you'll also need to pass a French-language proficiency test.