Premier Scott Moe was joined by Finance Minister Donna Harpauer on Thursday to announce a temporary wage supplement for lower income essential workers helping vulnerable citizens. Moe said workers helping vulnerable citizens through the COVID-19 pandemic will have their salaries topped-up by a cost-shared $400 per month temporary wage supplement.
Moe also said the province anticipates this wage benefit will benefit up to 35,000 workers who may be eligible. The benefit will have an estimated cost of about $56 million, of which $53 million will be covered by the federal government and just under $3 million by the provincial government.
Harpauer said the federal government introduced the program and has asked provinces to cost share and participate.
“The intent is to support those that are supporting the most vulnerable,” said Harpauer.
“[These facilities] are no longer allowed visitors, so it is all on the workers within those facilities and that is also the area where you may see some of your lower income,” she added.
Additionally, the province announced on Thursday they will be expanding child care accessibility as the first phase of the Re-Open Saskatchewan plan is set to take place on May 4. A media release sent out by the province said following the closure of school-based child care facilities last month, more than 2,100 of those spaces continue to operate as a part of a reserved supply for pandemic response workers. There will now be capacity within the supply to expand to other workers as Saskatchewan continues to reopen in the coming weeks.
In addition to the 47 school-based centres opening, 350 non-school based child care centres and homes will continue to operate.
“We still have a significant number of spaces available,” said Moe. “We are going to be opening those spaces to other workers who may require child care now or in the weeks ahead,” he added.
To date, Saskatchewan has 389 cases of COVID-19. Of those cases, 10 are currently in hospital, 295 have recovered and six have died.
