OSC sometimes hires 70 guards this time of yr. Thus far, the group solely has round 30.
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Ottawa is dealing with a scarcity of crossing guards to maintain youngsters secure at school zones this yr, in line with the Ottawa Security Council (OSC).
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The OSC, a not-for-profit group that employs crossing guards throughout the town, mentioned in a media launch on Monday that it was on the lookout for staff interested by turning into crossing guards because it offers with a staffing scarcity.
“We’re interesting to people interested by making a distinction in the neighborhood to affix our crew. Our crossing guard crew is filled with devoted people, obsessed with preserving kids secure,” mentioned Jamie Kwong, the manager director of the OSC.
OSC crossing guards obtain a aggressive wage and “numerous perks and alternatives for bonuses,” Kwong added.
The employees sought by OSC would participate within the Grownup Crossing Guard Program, which is a partnership between the group and the town of Ottawa to deploy crossing guards at over 260 faculty zone intersections within the capital.
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Kwong mentioned in an e mail that OSC sometimes hires 70 guards this time of yr. Thus far, the group solely has round 30. They’re hoping to search out 40 or 50 extra. “Ideally,” he mentioned, “we’d like to rent nearer to 100 guards to make sure greater than sufficient protection all through the college yr.”
Crossing guard pay begins at $17 per hour, Kwong mentioned, but it surely will increase over time and emergency “on name” guards make greater than $30 per hour. They sometimes work eight to 12 hours per week.
Crossing guards are an important a part of their neighborhood, in line with OSC. Every year they conduct roughly 4 million secure crossings of kids close to colleges and so they assist scale back the possibility of street fatalities.
In Ottawa between 2016 and 2020, street accidents involving pedestrians resulted in 27 deaths in line with the metropolis of Ottawa’s annual street security reviews.
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OSC blamed its staffing woes on the pandemic, the flight of staff from the service trade and the rising value of dwelling. Kwong mentioned hiring staff has been troublesome over the previous couple of years, however this yr is proving exceptionally difficult.
Crossing guards work part-time to information kids safely throughout streets close to colleges, normally earlier than faculty begins within the morning and after it ends within the afternoon.
OSC cited the testimonies of two Ottawa crossing guards of their media launch. Scout, a crossing guard since 2019 described it as “an ideal job for those who want to work independently, meet with the general public, and assist kids cross safely. Additionally a great job for college students learning in faculty.”
Eleanor, additionally a crossing guard since 2019, mentioned “nothing makes a day higher than a random driver opening their window and thanking you for preserving the children secure as they’re on the cease gentle.”
OSC directed candidates to its web site at www.crossing-guard.ca.
