Ontario school boards hiring uncertified emergency staff as schools reopen

Teachers unions say noncertified staff that supervise students in unforeseen circumstances are underqualified and relying on them is unsustainable.

Thestar.com
Jan. 18, 2022
Olivia Bowden

Multiple Ontario school boards are looking to hire emergency replacement supply staff that are uncertified as the Omicron wave has led to staff shortages.

Several leaders of teachers unions in the province told the Star that noncertified staff that come in to supervise students in unforeseen circumstances are underqualified and relying on this type of staffing long-term is not sustainable.

“As a result of Omicron, boards are allowed to use emergency supply,” said Karen Brown, president of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario. “But this is not a long-term solution.

“It’s supposed to be very short-term to help. They aren’t supposed to be replacing qualified teachers to actually deliver curriculum,” she said. Brown said she’s heard that these uncertified staff will be brought in on a rotation and may have to deliver curriculum.

Schools were to reopen for in-person learning Monday, but bad weather delayed that for many.

Missing students and teachers are a concern with the reopening, as continued community spread of the virus will undoubtedly affect staffing and attendance, the province said last week.

As a result, student-teachers are allowed to supply classrooms, and retired teachers can now work a maximum of 95 days, higher than the previous benchmark of 50 days.

But under the Education Act, a school board can appoint a person who is not a teacher in the case of an emergency. That person needs to be at least 18 and a high school graduate. They can fill a position for up to 10 days, starting from the day they are hired, according to the law.

“I think they’re going to have an extraordinarily difficult time filling the vacancies,” said Brown. “We see it in health care and other sectors, it’s been very difficult and education is not going to be any different.”

She said union members do not feel schools are safe, and boards may have trouble attracting more staff, especially temporary emergency workers as they won’t have health benefits or sick days.

School boards were reporting high rates of absenteeism before Omicron, and the province has invested over $300 million to hire about 2,300 additional staff me, said Caitlin Clark, spokesperson for Education Minister Stephen Lecce.

More than 12,000 people were brought into school boards through teacher candidate hiring and allowing retired teachers to work more days, she said.

Last week, the province said it was increasing resources and investments around in-person learning, including providing more rapid tests, and a non-fit-tested N95 mask for education staff.

The Halton Catholic District School Board has a hiring notice up for Emergency Replacement Supply, inviting applicants who are not certified and who are not pending certification from the Ontario College of Teachers.

Durham District School Board also was hiring, up until Monday, uncertified emergency supply teachers. The board also posted a notice searching for uncertified staff in November due to a “province-wide” shortage of teachers, the DDSB said in a statement at the time.

In October, Norah Marsh, the director of education at the board, told school trustees that staff absenteeism was at a high due to “to COVID-19 management.” Criminal record checks were being sped up as a result to fast-track hiring.

The Durham board told the Star that since December it has hired 592 staff, and 207 have been uncertified occasional teachers. Uncertified staff is only being used in situations where certified teachers are unavailable, it said.

The Star emailed multiple other GTA school boards about emergency hiring. The Peel District School Board said it relies on this type of staff placement for “safety purposes” as school monitors. It did not provide more information on how many uncertified staff it is seeking.

The York Region District School Board said that staff shortages are not unique to public education. “While we will use emergency lists if required, it is not our preference and we will work toward ensuring backfill as we reopen to in-person learning,” it said in a statement.

The TDSB was unable to answer questions about emergency staffing in time for deadline.

Karen Littlewood, the president of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation, said it’s a concern if boards have to become too reliant on emergency staff, as they aren’t qualified to teach the curriculum.

“Education is not a vending machine where you press a button and a lesson comes out,” she said. “These are trained professionals who are off sick and are not being replaced by someone who can do the job.”

Education workers are not feeling respected because the province hasn’t provided working conditions that will make them feel safe enough during the pandemic, said Littlewood.

The province not offering PCR testing for students and teachers, unless they become symptomatic while at school, has been a concern.

The OSSTF has also been calling for more HEPA filters, reduced class sizes and proper testing and tracing. Currently absenteeism will be reported, but not COVID-19 numbers in schools.