The Bluewater District School Board is laying off 49 educational assistants as of next September. That's about 20 per cent of the EA's currently employed by the board. The OSSTF is not happy with the layoffs.
Paula Walpole, the local president of the OSSTF Educational Support Professionals Unit, worries about the well-being of the students as well as the safety of the staff, who will have to deal with the same number of students with less staff.
"We will still have the same number of special needs students so my members are concerned about the safety of those students. I'm concerned about the safety of my members," says Walpole.
Educational assistants provide safety and supervision for children with special needs. Walpole says students' learning will suffer.
"These students all require education assistants' support. Some students will not have the support and therefore, will not be as successful as they could be," says Walpole.
The Bluewater board is also laying off one early childhood educator.
Cynthia Lemon, the board's human resources manager, says the layoffs are a budgetary necessity.
