KITCHENER -- Kitchener announced Monday that 842 of its workers will be placed on temporary emergency leave.

All of them are employed on a temporary, casual or part-time basis.

In a statement, sent to CTV News, they say they had to make the difficult decision because of the extended closure of all city facilities due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Many of the municipal programs and events our community values most cannot be offered at this time, and as a result, we do not have work to provide to the employees who normally deliver them. In addition, like many residents and businesses in our community, the spread of COVID-19 is creating significant financial pressures on the City.”

Employees on Declared Emergency Leave will continue to be employed by the city and will be able to return to their jobs once normal operations resume.

Officials also say that another 82 temporary hires won’t be able to start their seasonal jobs as the city had planned. Those workers will be able to apply for the federal government’s new Canada Emergency Response Benefit.

Waterloo announced its decision to lay off 436 part-time and casual employees on April 3, while Guelph made a similar announcement affecting 601 part-time employees on April 2.

Also on Monday, the Kitchener Public Library announced approximately 100 of its casual, part-time and full-time staff members have been placed on a temporary leave of absence.