Career Mirror -- by Mark Sproxton

Driving up to the warehouse at 8 p.m. on a Thursday night, the parole officer hopes his client will be hard at work inside. So far, every meeting with the client has gone well as have the meetings with the parolee's employer. But this is an unscheduled meeting and the probation officer knows a good start by someone on parole doesn't always mean the virtuous behaviour will continue.

"I don't like it when the guys return to jail," explains Rob Christensen. "It can be a very (defeating) feeling. When you do see someone come out and succeed, it's very good." In his nine years on the job, the Calgary parole officer has seen his share of successes and failures. Regardless of what happens from case to case, though, his main goal remains to help offenders released from prison do well in the community while protecting the public at the same time.

It's a busy and demanding job. And like other careers within law enforcement, comes with its good and its bad, especially because parole officers must maintain constant contact with all aspects of the parolees' lives. "You see some really terrible stuff in the files and you have to deal with these people professionally," Christensen said. "You're always looked at as the bad guy when all you're trying to do is help the guy. And it can be confrontational at times." But, for him, there are many pluses as well. "I like the interaction with all the different characteristics of people. I like helping when I can and the law enforcement side of things."

Working for Corrections Canada as a parole officer in the community, Christensen's duties see him travel throughout the city meeting those on parole in their homes and at their jobs. Parole officers must also try and meet employers, family, friends and others in regular contact with the parolee to ensure everything is on the straight and narrow, or to find a way to get more help to the parolee. This could include something such as enrolling the parolee in a substance abuse program. As all these matters are legal issues, parole officers spend plenty of time taking notes and completing paperwork in the office as well.

The law always held an attraction for Christensen, who originally contemplated applying for the RCMP while he was in college. "I was looking at law enforcement of some sort," he said. But the thought of moving all over the country held little appeal. In discussing his future with others, someone suggest applying at the Bowden penitentiary. He did, was accepted and began work as a federal corrections officer in 1989 and worked his way up the ladder. (Provincial corrections officers deal with those who receive sentences of less than two years.) He spent six years as a parole officer in the institution before moving to Calgary.

He now puts in a regular work week of 40 hours, but the days and times of his shifts may vary. Parole officers are paid on a sliding scale up to about $63,000 a year. Knowing the ins and outs of parole, however, is but a small part of what's required in a parole officer. Christensen said a parole officer needs solid communication skills, patience and strong interpersonal skills. "You need to be able to interact on a professional level and a personal level. You have to be able to read people in a hurry."

Parole officers have been around for decades and that's likely to continue, Christensen said. And he offered this advice to those considering this line of work: "Don't feel like you can change the world and don't feel like you can change everybody. Take the satisfaction from the ones who do."