PEI

P.E.I contract teachers face job cuts

Some P.E.I. teachers won't be getting their jobs back and others will have their hours curtailed because fewer teachers are retiring this year, according to the P.E.I. Teacher's Federation.

The P.E.I. Teacher's Federation says fewer teachers are retiring.

Gilles Arsenault, president of the P.E.I. Teachers' Federation. (CBC News)

Some P.E.I. teachers won't be getting their jobs back and others will have their hours curtailed because fewer teachers are retiring this year, according to the P.E.I. Teacher's Federation.

This September, there will be fewer contract teaching positions and new teachers will have reduced hours, said Gilles Arsenault, the federation's president.

He said the cuts will affect the Western School Board in particular because an unexpected number of teachers decided not to retire.

In April, the provincial government announced it would cut 120 education jobs over three years through attrition, but Arsenault said that's not the case.

"There are reductions in the assignments that were given to some of the probationary teachers. We know many fixed-term teachers that won't be returning because of these cuts to the system. We are concerned about the impact that's going to have on our classrooms here in P.E.I.," he said.

Arsenault said he hopes to know the final number of cuts by July.