Stouffville lays off 19 full-time employees due to budget shortfall from COVID

The temporary layoffs will be for a minimum of three months. the town said.

Yorkregion.com
Jan. 25, 2021
Simon Martin

The Town of Whitchurch-Stouffville has temporarily laid off 19 full-time staff due to revenue shortfalls resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The staff layoffs are contained to the Leisure and Community Services Department and will result in the complete closure of all town facilities, the cancellation of all town events and the cancellation of all programs and camps, both online and in person. The layoffs will be for a minimum of 12 weeks and are effective immediately.

“This is a sad day for Whitchurch-Stouffville,” Mayor Iain Lovatt said. “This is not something we ever want to do, and this decision did not come without serious contemplation. We must deal with these challenges head on and make decisions that are best for the taxpayers.”

The town has suffered serious revenue shortfalls since the onset of the pandemic early last year, according to Lovatt.

Whitchurch-Stouffville Chief Administrative Officer Rob Adams said the shortfalls have been exacerbated with the current lockdown, which has made providing services even more difficult. “In order to remain fiscally responsible to our taxpayers, we must mitigate our losses, which has unfortunately resulted in these cuts.”

The temporary layoffs affect the Leisure and Community Services Department, which oversees parks, arenas, museum, special events, downtown viability and the Leisure Centre, including aquatics, fitness and recreation programs.

Other town services, including garbage collection, snow plowing and infrastructure maintenance, will continue and are not impacted. The Whitchurch-Stouffville Public Library will also remain open for curbside pickup. Outdoor recreation facilities, such as town trails, toboggan hills, Greenwood Park outdoor skating rink and the off-leash door park, will also remain open to the public.