Supply teacher shortages and increased sick days taking toll on region’s schools

Local education unions are asking members to report problems stemming from lack of staff

A regional education worker shortage is causing significantly increased workloads for teachers when schools are unable to fill absent positions, local education unions say.

The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario Waterloo Region, Designated Early Childhood Educators Waterloo Region and the Waterloo Region Occasional Teachers’ Local are asking their members to report problems in the classroom stemming from labour shortages at the Waterloo Region District School Board.

“There is a shortage of occasional teachers, which results in daily failto-fills, the loss of planning time, additional supervision and the never-ending cycle of preparation payback that is promised and not paid back,” the survey reads.

A shortage of early childhood educators and school bus drivers are resulting in additional workloads for teachers.

“This is a provincewide issue, but the WRDSB fails to recognize that they have a role in the challenges that the Occasional Teachers of the WRDSB are experiencing,” the survey reads.

“The WRDSB consistently requires ETFO to pick up the pieces. Take away your planning time, require you to take on more supervision, cancel special education supports, teach short-staffed — the list goes on.”

The unions are asking teachers to report situations where the board cannot fill a position, causing teachers to lose planning time and supervise for an absent employee. It also asks to report when buses are late on the way home, and teachers are required for more supervision, or when kindergarten teachers are forced to work short staffed.

The unions are asking for reports of incidents dating back to Sept. 1, to capture the full picture of the current school year.

The unions plan to take the results of the survey to the board to address the difficult issues and working conditions.

“To show the Board the significant impact these issues are having on members, we need the facts,” the survey reads.

The public board could not provide a breakdown of any of the shortages it is experiencing, or how many job vacancies it has.

“The Waterloo District School Board is actively recruiting to add complement to our supply rosters for occasional teachers, educational assistants, designated early childhood educators, custodians and some trades,” said spokesperson Estefania Brandenstein. “We believe it is important to regularly refresh our supply staff lists to ensure we continue to meet the needs of the students we serve.”

Labour shortages aren’t just impacting the public board.

“Right now, by far the biggest issue facing school boards right across the province is a major shortage of certified teachers,” said John Shewchuk, chief managing officer of the Waterloo Catholic District School Board.

“Absence due to illness also creates pressure on our contingent of educational assistants and early childhood educators,” he said.

A trifecta of COVID-19, the common cold and the flu has been ravaging classrooms through the fall and is expected to continue as cold weather forces more people inside. For school boards, it means a winter of trying to find supply teachers to fill lots of vacancies across multiple schools.

The Catholic school board has a call out to all Ontario certified teachers to join its daily occasional teacher list, as well as its long-term occasional teachers list.

It is also calling on all upcoming new graduates who have not yet received their certification, but will graduate in the next year, to apply for the occasional teacher list.

All candidates are welcome to apply; however, preference will be given to the candidates with proof of Catholic baptism and a reference from a Roman Catholic Church.

A trifecta of COVID-19, the common cold and the flu has been ravaging classrooms through the fall