Custodians at Waterloo region schools understaffed and overworked: unions

The unions representing custodians at schools in Waterloo region say their workers are understaffed and overworked.

“They are really frustrated that this situation has not been fixed for years,” said Sergio Pochon, vice president of the Custodial and Maintenance Association, the union that represents custodians at local public schools.

Pochon said the existing challenges custodians are facing have only heightened since the pandemic. He said there are hundreds of custodians at public schools in the region, but around 50 are off daily – mostly due to COVID-19. That means remaining staff have to scramble to get all of the work done, often forcing them to long hours and weekends, he said.

“Sometimes there are two to three schools with absences so that person has to go at night to three different schools to do eight hour schedules in two hours,” Pochon said.

A parent of a student at a Cambridge school said she’s noticed her child’s school isn’t as clean as it used to be pre-pandemic.

“What I have noticed is more garbage I would say on the outside,” said parent L'Shai Pearson. “Schools used to be kept in tiptop shape.”

When asked about school cleanliness, the Waterloo Region District School Board said it doesn’t have concerns. The board said the health of students and staff is its utmost priority and it is aware of staffing shortages.

“We are aware of some of these situations and we are working closely with the union and our staff to address these issues,” Estefanía Brandenstein, communications officer with WRDSB said, in part, in an emailed statement. “We continue to shift and make adjustments accordingly that benefit everyone involved.”

The union representing close to 200 custodians at local Catholic schools said its workers also feel understaffed and overworked.

Local 302 representative Rusty Sproul said some custodians are working up to four extra hours per day for extended periods.

Sproul said the union sees up to 40 custodians absent per day. But the Catholic board claimed it only has about 20 custodian absences daily, with five to seven of those due to COVID-19.

“We have been able to fill all of our vacancies so far with supply custodians and also by offering part-time staff additional hours,” said Terri Pickett, senior manager of facility services at Waterloo Catholic District School Board.

“It [absences] seems to have gone up a little bit but we seem to have plateaued,” said Pickett. “Hopefully we'll be on the downswing soon.”

Both school boards said they are in the process of recruiting more custodians. But union representatives said they will believe it when they see it, and are asking for more help and better pay.