Museums 'thrilled' with $25.7M pandemic bailout
CBC News | Posted: June 23, 2020 8:47 PM | Last Updated: June 23, 2020
Museum staff no longer facing unpaid leave to help overcome financial shortfall
National museums are now getting a boost from the federal government to help cope with shutdowns during the pandemic.
Last week, Ingenium, the corporation that operates the Canada Science and Technology Museum, the Canada Agriculture and Food Museum and the Canada Aviation and Space Museum, said staff had agreed to take several weeks of unpaid leave to prevent layoffs and help deal with a $7-million shortfall.
"We are thrilled that this new funding will ensure that there will no longer be a need for a reduction in hours for our staff," said Christine Cloutier, media relations officer with Ingenium.
The Ingenium museums, along with six other cultural institutions, will now share $25.7 million from the federal government through an emergency investment.
Canadian Heritage said the money is "to provide emergency financial assistance to organizations in order to allow them to continue to care for their heritage collections under these exceptional circumstances so that they may remain accessible to Canadians."
Among the other organizations receiving money are the Canadian Museum of History, the National Gallery of Canada, the Museum of Nature, Pier 21 in Halifax, the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg and the National Battlefields Commission.
The museums, which have been closed since mid-March, are now making plans for their eventual reopening with new COVID-19 protocols.
"We look forward to continuing the work of reopening our doors in a safe and timely manner, for those who visit our three museums in the National Capital Region," Cloutier said.
Corrections:- A previous version of this story said the money was coming through a support program called the Museum Assistance Program. In fact, the money is not part of that program but is an emergency investment. June 25, 2020 3:51 PM