Saskatoon, Regina public school divisions bringing in vaccination policy for staff

Two of Saskatchewan's largest school divisions are planning to require staff to either show proof of vaccination or provide regular test results.

Earlier this week, both Saskatoon Public Schools and Regina Public Schools announced their plans to bring in COVID-19 regulations as a way to keep staff and students safe.

"As educators, we teach the facts in our classrooms," read a statement from Saskatoon Public Schools. 

"When it comes to the COVID-19 vaccine, the scientific evidence showing its effectiveness is unequivocal."

Both school divisions said they were still working on details of the plan, including when and how it will be rolled out.

A statement from Regina Public Schools said volunteers, parents and contractors would also have to show either proof of vaccination or a recent negative test result.

The move comes after the Saskatchewan School Boards Association developed a draft policy for staff vaccinations earlier this month. 

The association distributed the draft policy to all school divisions across the province, but noted that individual school boards would have to make the final decision.

When the province brought in its latest public health order in September, it encouraged school divisions to bring in a vaccine mandate for employees. As of Oct. 1, all provincial ministry, Crown and government agencies are under a vaccine mandate.

The Saskatchewan Teachers' Federation began publicly advocating for bringing in rules for staff vaccinations in August.

Both the Regina and Saskatoon Catholic school divisions said they were still working on the issue but a decision had not yet been made.