Upper Grand issues layoff notices to 100 staff members

GUELPH – One hundred employees of the Upper Grand District School Board (UGDSB) aren’t sure if they’ll have jobs in September. 

The board issued 100 layoff notices to 77 elementary teachers and 23 early childhood educators (ECE) on March 26, but officials are hopeful they will be recalled before the layoffs actually take effect.  

Union officials say the layoffs are the result of provincial funding uncertainties and a drop in enrolment.

There were 24,233 students enrolled at the board’s 66 elementary schools last September, whereas projected enrolment this September is down to 23,662 – a drop of 2.4 per cent. 

The bulk of provincial funding is based on student enrolment.  

UGDSB spokesperson Heather Loney said enrolment projections are based on kindergarten enrolment, Grade 8 graduations, and the number of students leaving the board.

Loney would not say how many of the affected teachers and ECEs are working at schools in Wellington County or what grades they teach.   

Laid off employees were selected based on seniority, with exceptions for programming needs, as outlined in their collective agreements. 

It’s not the first time the board has issued layoff notices – in 2019, 55 teachers were given notice, and all were recalled before the new school year started in September. 

Loney said the board is “hopeful that many, if not all, staff will be called back due to additional vacancies during the staffing process and increased enrolment in September.” 

She said those calls will be made in order of seniority.  

'It's very stressful'

Upper Grand Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario president Krista Pederson said layoff notices “used to happen regularly as part of the staffing process,” with most or all recalled within a few months.

“Hopefully it will be similar this year," she said. 

The union held an online question-and-answer session on March 30, and Pederson said affected employees are feeling anxious.

“When you have a contract position, you don’t generally expect to be laid off,” she said.

Now, they “just don’t know if or when or if [they’ll] be called back, so it’s very stressful.” 

Pederson said it’s “a situation that could be avoided” if the Ministry of Education announced funding in early March, the way it used to. 

“We don’t actually even know when the government is going to announce the funding,” she said. “Does the government not understand that the boards are planning for the upcoming school year well ahead of summer?” 

ECEs 'trying to remain optimistic'

Ontario Secondary School Teacher’s Federation ECE president Cheryl Lampkin told the Advertiser this is the highest number of ECEs that have ever received layoff notices from the UGDSB.

She said the earliest the ECEs will receive call backs is September, as that’s when kindergarten enrolment will be confirmed. 

The Ministry of Education mandates that there be ECEs in kindergarten classrooms with more than 15 students, but if lower enrolment leads to smaller classes, there’s a good chance there will be more kindergarten classrooms without ECEs, Lampkin said. 

This is concerning because “there are huge benefits to having both (a teacher and an ECE) in a kindergarten classroom,” she said.

“When that isn’t happening that isn’t ideal for students ... ECEs are specialists in early childhood development, and their role is significant in those classrooms."

She noted that unlike teachers, ECEs don’t have prep time, so they are the constant person for the students. 

The UGDSB currently has 161 ECEs, including the 23 who’ve been issued layoff notices and 12 who have received surplus school notices, meaning they’re no longer needed at their current schools due to decreased enrolment. 

The affected ECEs met with their union at the Wellington County Museum and Archives on March 31.

Lampkin said they are “trying to remain optimistic that through possible retirements and leaves that we will be able to pull all of them back.”

Education minister Paul Calandra did not immediately respond to the Advertiser’s request for comment.   

Catholic board not expecting layoffs

At the Wellington Catholic District School Board (WCDSB), elementary enrolment is projected to grow by almost 2.8%, from 6,737 this school year to 6,925 in September. 

Enrolment there has been growing steadily – the figures for 2024 and 2023 were 6,485 and 6,167 respectively. 

WCDSB spokesperson Bianca Pettinaro attributed the growth to "multiple factors including migration of families to the area, immigration and newcomer families, and new developments.”