More frontline workers in the province will now have access to Ontario's emergency childcare program as schools remain closed in the province.
On Saturday, Education Minister Stephen Lecce announced that the province is expanding the eligibility for its free emergency childcare service.
The program will now be accessible for frontline workers in a variety of different industries including Canada Border Service Agency employees, individuals who work in emergency shelters as well as education workers who will be required to work in classrooms over the next two weeks in order to accommodate special needs students.
The complete expanded list of eligible individuals include:
-Front-line staff in Children’s Aid Societies and residential services
-Individuals working in developmental services, violence against women services, and antihuman trafficking
-Individuals working in victims’ services
-Non-municipal water and wastewater worker
-Provincial court services personnel, including Indigenous court workers
-Individuals engaged in interpreting or intervener services for persons who are deaf or deafblind
-Individuals working in a homeless shelter or providing services to people who are homeless
-OPS staff employed in radiation protection services
-RCMP and Canada Border Services
-Power workers
-Canada Post workers
-Pharma and medical device manufacturing and distribution workers
-Food safety inspectors and individuals working in the processing, manufacturing or distribution of food and beverages
According to Lecce, the province has the capacity of roughly 28,000 emergency childcare spots.
"Expanding this will allow us to responsibly build up and enable more workers to receive free childcare during this difficult time while these individuals have to physically go into work," he said.
Originally set to expire on January 8, Lecce also announced that the province will be extending the emergency childcare service for another two weeks to coincide with the extension of remote learning for elementary students in Ontario until January 25 that was announced earlier this week. The move was made as COVID-19 cases continue to rise in the province.
On Saturday, health officials in Ontario logged 3,443 new COVID-19 cases, 2,915 recoveries and 40 additional deaths.