For Immediate Release
24 August, 2023
NDP MHA Jordan Brown (Labrador West) is calling on government to provide better incentives to retain and recruit teachers in Labrador. The call comes after news that course offerings were cut because there are over nine teacher vacancies that have not been filled in Labrador West.
“Students in Labrador shouldn’t have fewer educational opportunities because government failed to do the work and make sure teachers were retained and recruited in Labrador,” said Brown. “My colleagues and I have been telling government to prioritize education in Labrador for quite some time. It’s not acceptable that government failed to have enough teachers in place for the first day of school.”
The cost of living in Labrador is one of the issues making it harder to retain and recruit workers in the region. The lack of affordable housing means that teachers accept jobs in more affordable parts of the province when positions become available. Brown says Labrador is a unique region and incentives for workers need to reflect that.
“There was a time when the province understood that Labrador needs to offer unique solutions like housing supports and full-time positions to retain and recruit teachers,” said Brown. “Now teachers are being asked to relocate to Labrador for a fraction of a full6time position with no housing supports in a region with a higher cost of living. The government is expecting workers to disadvantage themselves compared to their peers working elsewhere in the province – and Labradorians, particularly our students in this case, are going to lose out.”
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Media Contact: Eddy St. Coeur, Director of Communications, 709.729.2137