CALGARY – New funding for the Southern Alberta Institute of Technology (SAIT) is a slap in the face for dozens of workers who lost their jobs there last week.
“SAIT cut 28.5 full-time positions on Tuesday and the workers were treated like criminals,” says Bonnie Gostola, vice-president of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE).
“They were not allowed to return to their workstations to get their personal belongings. They weren’t allowed to say goodbye to their friends and colleagues. They were escorted from the premises,” she says. “Some said they felt they were treated like criminals.”
The Alberta government said today that it will provide $30 million towards the $150-million cost of redevelopment of the Taylor Family Campus Centre.
“Improved facilities are great, but they don’t work without workers,” says Gostola.
Employees at Lethbridge Polytechnic, which cut 53 jobs this week, and Red Deer Polytechnic, which cut more than 100 jobs in February, also reported abhorrent treatment as they were let go.
Post-secondary institutions across the province are expected to announce similar jobs cuts. These job losses are a result of Government of Alberta funding cuts as well as federal restrictions on international student enrollment.
“These are all loyal workers who have done nothing wrong,” says Gostola. “Staff were treated like they had been terminated for some misbehaviour. Yet instead of being treated with dignity, their careers were ended.
“Why do Alberta’s post-secondary institutions treat their workers with such contempt?”
Instead of further job cuts, she says the province needs a bold vision to build a better education system, one that creates workforce for tomorrow while treating today’s workers with respect.
“Tariffs and trade wars threaten Canadian jobs. We need real investment in education to prepare Albertans for an economy very different from the one we have today that is so closely tied to the U.S.,” says Gostola.
“We should be hiring more workers, not getting rid of the ones we have.”
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AUPE VP Bonnie Gostola is available for interviews.
For information, please contact Terry Inigo-Jones, Communications Officer, at 780-863-7850 or t.inigo-jones@aupe.org.
