All eyes were on Ontario's education minister today as he made an announcement one day after bargaining talks broke down with the union representing education workers.
Stephen Lecce did not announce any steps to keep the workers in schools, however he did announce new funding for parents who need to hire tutors for their children.
Starting today, parents with school-aged children up to 18 years old can apply for payments of $200 for each child, while parents with school-aged children with special education needs, up to the age of 21, can apply for $250.
Families can apply for Catch Up Payments through a website where they can create a unique profile for each eligible student.
Applications for Catch Up Payments will remain open until March 31, 2023.
“It could not be clearer that we must keep students in class without disruption, with a focus on catching up on the fundamentals – reading, writing and math – after two years of pandemic-related learning disruptions,” said Stephen Lecce, Minister of Education. “We are expanding tutoring supports, assessing every young child’s ability to read, and hiring more staff to ensure all kids get back on track and ultimately graduate into good-paying jobs. While we have provided over $600 million in learning recovery investments to publicly funded schools, we are also providing parents of all school-aged children direct financial relief that can be immediately reinvested to support their children.”