Whereas the Bill 112, “Hazel McCallion Act” was introduced by the Province May 18, 2023, to set the stage for the dissolution of the Region of Peel by January 1, 2025;
Whereas the Region of Peel currently employs over 7000 full and part time staff who will be affected by the dissolution;
Whereas the Provincial Government, has made it a top priority to attract and retain “good well paying” jobs to the Province of Ontario;
Whereas the Town of Caledon is growing significantly and will require additional staff resources to meet the current operational requirements and in order to prepare in becoming a single-tier municipality;
Whereas the result of the announced separation of the three municipalities of Brampton, Caledon and Mississauga has created serious uncertainty for Region of Peel employees in difficult economic times;
Whereas many of the employees impacted by the Bill 112 “Hazel McCallion Act” are residents of Brampton, Caledon and Mississauga and their future is a huge concern for the three municipalities;
Whereas a Transition Board will be appointed by the Province to facilitate and make recommendations, including: the employment of these staff members, the disbursement of programs and departments to municipalities, the services that will continue to be shared by the three municipalities and the financial rationalizations between the municipalities;
Whereas “the unknowns” pertaining to employment, financial stability and several other factors, generates an immense level of stress for current staff employed by the Region of Peel, as well as their families, which is further compounded by the relatively short time period announced by the Province before the proposed “dissolution” of the Region of Peel;
Now therefore be it resolved that the Province be requested to establish the Transition Board with all urgency and establish a work plan that makes obvious decisions quickly, to ease concerns for Peel Regional staff;
Further that the Transition Board be tasked with making the future employment of the current workforce of the Peel Region a priority regarding job security- separating out known services that will be transferred to the municipalities from others that will likely continue to operate on a shared service basis;
That the Town of Caledon request the creation of a working group to collaborate with the Human Resources leaders in each of the municipalities to ensure consistency for future hiring opportunities in each of the municipalities for Region of Peel staff;
That prior to the working group commencing, the Terms of Reference by approved by the Chief Administrative Officers of the four municipalities with the intention of strict adherence to the scope; and
That a copy of this resolution be provided to the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing, Region of Peel, the City of Brampton and City of Mississauga for information.