Local teachers taking fewer sick days

Provincially, absences are rising

WATERLOO REGION — Local teachers called in sick slightly less often last year, after years of rising absenteeism.

The decline to just below nine sick days per average teacher bucks a provincial trend that’s created financial pressure and filled classrooms with supply teachers.

Governments are “keenly aware that the increase in absences is placing a pressure on boards in the area of finances and student performance,” said Shesh Maharaj, treasurer for the Waterloo Catholic District School Board.

“Continuity in our classrooms is important to us when looking at student achievement and wellbeing,” said Michael Weinert, superintendent of human resources for the Waterloo Region District School Board.

The public school board stemmed absences by promoting employee wellness, intervening early in illness, and providing back-to-work supports, Weinert said.

He provides an example: The board helped a concussed employee return to work with a short-term change in assignment, a gradual schedule, and devices such as eyesight filters,

ear protection, altered lighting, and a quiet work area.

Ontario teachers began calling in sick more often after 2012, when the province stopped them from banking unused sick days for a cash payout upon retirement.

Losing the perk has not caused the increase, a teachers’ union argues. Rather, teachers have been given better access to the sick leave they need, said Greg Weiler, local president of the Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario.

Weiler worries about teachers who stay on the job despite their declining health, leading to lengthier illnesses and more disability claims. He cites stresses that include large classes, lack of supports, and aggressive or undiagnosed students.

“The demanding workload and expectations mean many teachers simply ignore health and other issues until they become too big to ignore,” Weiler said.

The data on sick days, prepared by an agency that tracks them for actuarial purposes, shows:

• All employees (teachers and others) at two school boards in this region took almost 10 sick days on average in 2016-17. That’s down slightly from the previous year but it’s up from just over eight sick days taken in 2013-14.

• Across 54 Ontario school boards, all employees took just over 12 sick days on average in 2016-17. That’s up slightly from the previous year and it’s up from just under 10 sick days taken in 2013-14.

Supply teaching costs have soared 67 per cent over six years at the two regional boards, reaching almost $24 million. Salaries for sick employees have jumped 18 per cent over three years, reaching almost $32 million.

Local boards say they have not reduced classroom spending to pay for sick employees.

Ontario auditor general Bonnie Lysyk warned that Ontario school boards aren’t responding effectively to rising absenteeism. Teacher absences lead to financial stress and “decreased morale” for students, Lysyk noted last December in a report.

She called for improved attendance support programs, better absence reporting and analysis, and improved return-to-work programs.

Teacher absences may hurt student achievement and are “financially and culturally debilitating for school boards, their staff and, by extension, their students,” the agency that tracks them has warned.

Catholic schools could spend more to better manage employee attendance, Maharaj said. But the board sees fewer sick days than other boards and chooses to spend this money elsewhere.

Go to therecord.com to compare teacher sick days.