The decision proved to be unpopular among parents and teachers and sparked a flurry of complaints to the ministry.
Fredericton (13 July 2009) - The New Brunswick government has backed away from a decision to cut almost 600 library assistants and student support staff jobs in the province.
Education Minister Roland Haché, reversing the decision made by a predecessor, is using $2 million from teachers' Innovative Learning Fund so the workers can get their jobs back.
The former education minister, Kelly Lamrock, had announced the province would not be renewing the contracts for the education support workers in the fall.
Opposition to threat to inclusive education
The decision proved to be unpopular among parents and teachers and sparked a flurry of complaints to the ministry.
One prominent critic was Wayne MacKay, author of a 2006 report on inclusive education in New Brunswick.
MacKay felt that the slashing of hundreds of staff was serious because inclusion cannot work as intended without them.
The funding arrangement adopted by the new minister was one that was proposed by the New Brunswick Teachers' Federation. They had asked the newly appointed Education Minister to rehire the workers by redirecting money from an education fund set up by the province.
Sandy Harding, president of the union local that represents the workers, was pleased with the decision.
"Educational support staff are a key component to education, and now I think this government understands … that when you cut us you're truly having a true impact," Harding said.
NUPGE
The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is one of Canada's largest labour organizations with over 340,000 members. Our mission is to improve the lives of working families and to build a stronger Canada by ensuring our common wealth is used for the common good. NUPGE
More information:
Inclusion! What is Inclusion anyway? - pdf
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