Minister of Education, Bernard Drainville, is making a plea to retired teachers in response to an unprecedented shortage of educators. He is calling on them to lend their support for the upcoming school year, although he cannot currently guarantee the same financial incentives that were previously available.
Drainville recently announced that he will be sending a letter in early June to all retirees who taught at the preschool, primary, secondary, and college levels within the past five years.
In this context, the minister is inviting them to express their interest in providing assistance to the education system by substitute teaching, filling teaching positions, or undertaking other tasks.
“Financial incentives may apply, depending on the provisions in place within the various educational organizations,” the minister adds.
“A flawed initiative”
The teacher unions commend the initiative but criticize its flawed design, particularly due to the uncertainty surrounding financial incentives.
Since fall 2020, retired teachers who wish to return for substitute teaching have been able to receive payment at the maximum of their salary scale without it affecting their retirement benefits.
However, this measure is set to expire at the end of June, and there is currently no indication of its extension for the 2023-2024 academic year, as it was not included in the recently submitted budgetary rules for consultation within the education system.
The unions believe that Quebec should prioritize measures aimed at alleviating the daily workload of teachers in order to improve retention. According to Ministry of Education figures, over 8,600 teachers have retired in the past five years.
