CALGARY -- Just weeks before they were expected to be laid off, 317 temporary teaching jobs appear to be saved — for this year at least.
The CBE will vote Tuesday on a proposal to use $15 million from the Infrastructure Maintenance and Renewal Grant to keep those teachers in the classroom.
The CBE is facing a $32-million budget shortfall as a result of October’s provincial budget.
In a statement Monday, a spokesperson for Education Minister Adriana LaGrange said while they are pleased the CBE is considering rescinding the layoff notices, the reversal is a “clear example of their failed attempt to use our teachers and our kids’ education as a political tool.”
"Had CBE taken Minister LaGrange up on her offer to have Alberta Education assist in finding efficiencies in their operating budget, we are certain that this could have been avoided in the first place," the spokesperson said.
Alberta Teachers’ Association Local 38 president Bob Cocking called this a "bandage" that puts the future of teachers’ jobs off until spring budget discussions.
He said he’s hopeful the positions can be saved through retirements, but added an expected increase of approximately 2,000 new students next year will still result in larger class sizes.
