Alberta scaling back K-12 education funding during COVID-19 pandemic

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Any staff impacted by these adjustments, the province says, will qualify for the federal government’s enhanced EI program, and other support programs for Canadian workers.

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Sarah Hoffman, the NDP’s Critic for Education, called the measure which will affect thousands a “cold and heartless” decision by the UCP government.

“This is pure cruelty,” Hoffman said. “Jason Kenney is doing harm to students with complex needs, their families, and to tens of thousands of Alberta workers. What kids need right now is stability and support with their learning at home. Jason Kenney doesn’t seem to care about that.”

Impacted positions include educational assistants, substitute teachers, bus drivers and other support staff. Hoffman says at last count, there were more than 16,000 educational assistants in the province.

Hoffman says the NDP opposition has learned the cutback equates to about 14 per cent of the base operating grant for education, or approximately $128 million.

“Instead of standing by these hardworking Albertans, as he has urged private employers to do, Jason Kenney is pushing thousands of people onto a massively overwhelmed federal unemployment insurance program,” added Hoffman. “He is deliberately creating new suffering and misery for tens of thousands of families already under extreme mental health pressures.”

Bruce Buruma, director of community relations at Red Deer Public Schools, says the division was informed of the news at about 1 p.m. on Saturday, and quickly held a meeting with senior admin to discuss.

“Initially when we were faced with this pandemic crisis, the provincial government had confirmed they were going to maintain funding levels for education. Needless to say, that has changed due to the severity of the situation,” Buruma said Saturday.

“We have much to go through to determine to what extent this will impact our staffing.”

Not only is the number of staff affected not yet available, Buruma noted, the division is not entirely clear on what the province means by ‘non-essential support staff.’

“We just want to add that the work our staff has done the last couple of weeks preparing for learning to continue has been amazing. This is difficult because we have a wonderful group of staff at all levels committed to our students. We can’t understate the important role these staff have played,” he says.

“This is just a reflection of these difficult times, and how our world has changed an awful lot. There’s a great degree of uncertainty.”

Kathleen Finnigan, Interim Superintendent with Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools, adds, “We understand that many of our staff have questions and concerns after hearing this announcement. Our Senior Administration team will be involved in a province-wide teleconference Monday to gather additional details and gain clarification on what this means for Red Deer Catholic Regional Schools. As soon as details are determined, we will provide an update to you.”