The City of Orillia has temporarily suspended employment for a portion of its workforce as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We are continually monitoring the situation and adapting as necessary,” officials say.
Orillia’s chief administrative officer, Gayle Jackson, said in a statement that the city hopes to “re-engage” its employees in “short order” as the COVID-19 curve is flattened.
“The City of Orillia is still here to provide critical services to the community and I want to assure the public we are doing everything we can to respond proactively to these unprecedented times,” Jackson said.
Officials say the city provided its union employee groups the mandatory 10-day notice of pending layoffs on Tuesday.
Temporary layoffs for employees with environmental services, operations and parks, as well as recreation and culture, will go into effect on April 10.
Temporary layoffs will take effect on April 15 for clerical and technical workers.
The 19 employees that are exempt from the mandatory notice will be temporarily suspended beginning Monday, April 6.
“It’s difficult to see anyone temporarily out of work, but it speaks to the gravity of the COVID-19 situation and the difficult decisions that are being made across the entire community,” Orillia Mayor Steve Clarke said in a statement.
“Our main goal is to keep them safe and healthy and get them back to work as soon as responsibly possible.”
In Simcoe Muskoka, there have been 55 confirmed cases of the novel coronavirus, seven of which have been in Orillia.
As of Tuesday, Ontario has reported 1,966 total COVID-19 cases and 33 deaths.
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