Substitute Teachers Are Being Used to Replace Support Staff

EDMONTON, Alberta--(BUSINESS WIRE)--While the province continues to ignore the crisis in Alberta classrooms, Edmonton Public Schools is bringing substitute teachers into classrooms to handle the extra work normally done by education support staff. Support workers are on day three of a strike at the school district.

CUPE 3550 President Mandy Lamoureux says the board is paying $230 per day per teacher, considerably more than the wage being asked for by support workers in the strike.

“While the Alberta government tells support staff to be happy with poverty level wages, there’s apparently enough money to cover extra teachers’ salaries,” said Lamouruex. “They should be talking to us about ways to solve the real, long-term problems in Alberta classrooms.”

Lamoureux said the average education support worker in Alberta makes just $34,500, with Educational Assistants averaging even less at $26,400. Support workers have not had wage increases in ten years, a period of time in which inflation was at 30%.

“The best way to solve the crisis in the classrooms isn’t to scramble and hire a few substitute teachers,” said Lamoureux. “The best way to solve the crisis in the classrooms is to solve the underfunding problem, the low wage problem, and the recruitment problem.”

:clc/cope 491