Province announces help for parents in the event of a strike

iheartradio.ca/newstalk1010
February 5, 2020

The provincial government is trying to win favour with the parents of school-aged kids, with strikes by teachers on the horizon.,

Education Minister Stephen Lecce has announced families will be eligible for financial support, in the event of a strike that closes schools, or school-based daycares.

"We recognize the impact of union escalation on families is real, and unions expect hard-working families to bear the costs of their cyclical labour action. While unions impose hardship on families and students, our government is taking proactive steps to ensure students remain cared for -- and families supported -- in the event that unions decide to further escalate job action in their fight for enhanced compensation and other demands. The contrast could not be clearer."

Lecce says you don't necessarily have to have a child in daycare, but as long as the school closes, you're eligible for money.

In a release, the government outlined who is eligible for what.

Eligible parents of children up to age 12 (Grade 7), or up to age 21 for children and youth with special needs, in a publicly funded school, qualify for:

• $60 per day for children aged 0-6 who are not yet enrolled in school but attend a school-based child care centre that is required to close on account of the strike.
• $40 per day for students in Junior Kindergarten (JK) and Senior Kindergarten (SK).
• $25 per day for students in Grades 1 up to and including Grade 7.
• $40 total per day for students in JK up to and including Grade 12 with a special need(s).

In the event that all teachers unions go on strike, the cost to the province could be up to $48 million per day.

Parents can register online at Ontario.ca/SupportForParents.