Quebec school boards and service centres can now hire additional staff for their schools, provided their salaries stay within the provincial budgets, Education Minister Sonia LeBel announced on the social media platform X.

LeBel emphasized that while budget targets remain important, the regulations should allow school service centres to better manage resources without affecting services to students.

“Targets remain targets. It's an essential indicator to follow the budget. But we'd like the regulations to allow school service centres to manage their resources without compromising services to students,” LeBel said.

Background: Previous Hiring Limits

The previous Education Minister, Bernard Drainville, had imposed limits on new hiring. These rules were tied to access to an additional $540 million in funding after months of protests and public criticism over tight education budgets.

LeBel clarified she is not formally changing any regulations but wants the full-time equivalent targets to act more as flexible guidelines. This allows schools to hire as long as they stay within their budgets rather than hitting a fixed cap.

“I'm not lifting anything. Full-time equivalents are an important indicator of an institution that will respect its budget because 80 per cent of the education budget goes to salaries,” LeBel said on Wednesday morning before a caucus meeting.

Ongoing Discussions and Uncertainties

LeBel said she is working with school service centres to explore changes to regulations concerning full-time equivalent thresholds.

Some school boards and service centres had refrained from replacing teachers on maternity or sick leave due to previous limits.

Both the Quebec English School Boards Association and the Fédération des centres de services scolaires du Québec are awaiting official clarification on how the new flexibility will affect hiring practices.

Union Concerns and Reactions

Teacher unions criticized the hiring freeze, warning that it has already affected students. Shortages led to reduced extra-curricular activities, field trips, and other programs.

The Fédération des employées et employés de services publics union welcomed LeBel’s announcement as a relief for schools.

“But the Coalition Avenir Québec should not expect us to celebrate solving problems they themselves created,” said union president Frédéric Brun.

“Since the announcement of a hiring freeze in 2024, we warned it would be catastrophic for the system.”

Political Perspectives

Québec Solidaire education critic Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois called the announcement a positive step.

“The next step would be for all those absurd conditions to be lifted,” he said, referring to administrative requirements previously attached to additional funding.

School boards and service centres were also asked to consolidate some administrative services to access the extra $540 million in funding.

Implications for Schools

With the new flexibility:

• Schools can hire additional staff without breaching budget rules.

• Full-time equivalent limits are now more of a guideline than a hard cap.

• Students may see improvements in extra-curricular and educational services.

School authorities are awaiting further guidance to implement the changes effectively.

Education Minister Sonia LeBel is expected to release detailed guidelines for school boards and service centres in the coming weeks, clarifying how budgets and hiring flexibility will be applied.