NDP Tables Motion Calling for Emergency Plan to End School Violence

QUEEN'S PARK - Faced with the government’s complete inaction on the issues of school violence, NDP Education Critic, Chandra Pasma (Ottawa West-Nepean), and NDP Labour Critic, Jamie West (Sudbury), announced today that they are tabling a motion calling on the government to immediately implement an Emergency Plan to End School Violence. Pasma and West were joined by labour leaders from six education unions in support of this motion.

“Eight weeks into the school year, there has been no action at all from this government to address the crisis of violence,” said MPP Pasma. “Our children’s learning is being interrupted daily. Classroom evacuations have become just part of a normal school day for our kids, along with educational assistants dressed head-to-toe in protective gear.

“Our kids are bearing the brunt of Doug Ford’s cuts to education, from larger class size to fewer EAs and support staff, to the lack of mental health professionals, and the reduction of supports for students with special needs. This creates frustration, which leads to violence. If Doug Ford cared about our kids, he would make sure the funding is there to support them and keep them safe.”

“The right to a safe workplace doesn’t go away just because you work in a school,” said MPP West. “Our committed, caring education workers and teachers shouldn’t have to put up with injuries as a routine part of the job just because Doug Ford and Jill Dunlop don’t care enough to make the changes required to end school violence. That’s why we’re calling on every MPP who cares about our children to support this motion.”

The motion calls on the Ford government to immediately implement an Emergency Safe Schools Plan. This plan, developed in consultation with workers in the sector, includes:

• Funding to hire additional qualified staff, including mental health professionals, education assistants, child and youth workers, and other education workers.
• Funding for comprehensive training for all workers and supervisors.
• A sector-specific regulation for education under the Occupational Health and Safety Act.
• A permanent, tri-partite Provincial Health and Safety Working Group to review and adapt current policies regarding workplace violence in the education sector.
• A single, province-wide online reporting system for violent incidents and data collection to understand the full scope of the problem.