Layoffs at Kawartha-Haliburton CAS will impact community

PETERBOROUGH, ON, July 18, 2024 /CNW/ - On Thursday July 4^th, workers at the Kawartha-Haliburton Children's Aid Society – members of OPSEU/SEFPO Local 334 – were advised of significant cuts being made to staff, with a deficit management plan being implemented for the next three years. The layoffs will impact 21 full-time staff members in critical roles and will reduce the workforce by 20%. The deficit management plan is due to a provincial failure to provide the Kawartha Haliburton Children's Aid Society with adequate resources to face increasing challenges in Peterborough, Kawartha Lakes and Haliburton area – and this failure will leave vulnerable children at serious risk.

"We will continue to see an increase in the deaths of children, like we heard about a few weeks ago in Kingston when child protection is not allotted sufficient money to adequately protect children," said Ruby Taylor, President of OPSEU/SEFPO Local 334 and child protection worker. 

Kawartha-Haliburton CAS cuts will be felt by workers across the organization that are integral to protecting children and ensuring the organization runs efficiently.

"The cuts proposed will jeopardize the safety and well-being of the children in our communities, and we firmly believe that injuries and deaths will result. They will not be from "poor clinical decisions", but rather from short-staffing and unmanageable workloads. "Without adequate resources, it is becoming increasingly difficult to keep children and youth safe," says Taylor.

The systemic underfunding of social services is not isolated to the child welfare sector, the entire public service sector has been deeply under resourced. The needs in our communities, and across Ontario, have been on the rise with increases in substance use, unprecedented mental health concerns, the skyrocketing cost of living, an extreme housing shortage and excessive wait times for services.

The members of OPSEU/SEFPO Local 334 are calling on the Ford government to fix the funding shortage now with an email campaign targeting Premier Ford and the Minister of Children, Community and Social Services, Michael Parsa. They will also be doing community outreach and will be handing out flyers at the Peterborough Farmer's Market this weekend.

Background:

• The union has repeatedly reached out to the Minister, Premier and local MPPs with little to no response.
• The local has 110 members, 21 layoffs are expected to be completed by March 31, 2025.

SOURCE Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU/SEFPO)

For more information, contact: Ahmar Khan, OPSEU/SEFPO Communications, (416)-802-8121, [email protected]