Staff shortages could affect Edmonton pool hours, capacity limits: city
A province-wide labour shortage among lifeguards and swim instructors could make it harder to enjoy Edmonton's outdoor pools, according to the city.
Swimmers lined up outside Queen Elizabeth Pool before 6 a.m. Wednesday, eagerly awaiting the official start of outdoor swim season.
"We have such a short season, but being able to swim with the smell of the trees in the Kinsman, it's a real treat," said one swimmer.
"We swim indoors all winter and it's just a treat to get outside," said another.
The city said that summer treat may be limited this year as pools deal with staff shortages.
"With the pandemic, we just weren't getting people through the courses so there wasn't a large pool of people to draw from," said City of Edmonton Operations Supervisor Shauna Graham.
According to the Lifesaving Society of Alberta and Northwest Territories, Alberta is short 600 lifeguards. That impact is being felt across the province, said CEO Kelly Carter.
"What we are seeing is the impact more in rural Alberta, a lot more than urban Alberta, and of course those employers paying higher wages are attracting lifeguards a little bit easier," he said.
Certification requires about 110 hours of training and must be renewed every two years. That training takes about six months to a year in a condensed format, according to Carter.
"If we don't have lifeguards, obviously it impacts the accessibility for lane swims, for recreational opportunities and even for swimming lessons. And that contributes to the overall community health," he said.
The shortages are forcing pools across the province to make difficult decisions about hours and resources.
"We've been limiting how many people can swim so we can stay within the swimmer to lifeguard ratio. And there has been the odd day we have to shut early or open later," said Jamie Platz Family YMCA General Manager Heather Scherer.
The ratio of lifeguards to swimmers at YMCA locations is one lifeguard per 40 swimmers, said Scherer.
She added that across the four Edmonton locations, the YMCA is short about 100 staff members.
To help with the backlog, the YMCA is calling for support to cover the cost of training, which ranges from $700 to $1,500.
"If there were more grants out there to get more employees skilled, that would be amazing. The YMCA is a registered not-for-profit charity so we even do subsidize our members," said Scherer.
A spokesperson for the ministry of labour says prospective lifeguards can apply to two job grant programs (Canada-Alberta Job Grant and Transition to Employment Services) to cover part or all of their training.
Information on eligibility and how to apply is available online.
With files from CTV News Edmonton's Chelan Skulski.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
WATCH LIVE Following his conviction in hush money case, Trump speaks at news conference
A day after a New York jury delivered a historic guilty verdict in Donald Trump's criminal hush money trial, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee is holding a news conference Friday where he spoke publicly about the conviction and his White House bid.
'Unprecedented': Human smuggling from B.C. to U.S. soars, using train, Uber and foot
American prosecutors and law enforcement officers say they're dealing with a huge increase in human smuggling from British Columbia.
Actor Nick Pasqual charged with attempted murder after allegedly stabbing estranged girlfriend
An actor who has appeared in film and TV projects like 'Rebel Moon' and 'How I Met Your Mother' has been arrested and charged with stabbing his estranged girlfriend multiple times.
opinion Six ways to put your saving on autopilot and pay yourself first
In his latest personal finance column for CTVNews.ca, Christopher Liew explains how automating your savings and paying yourself has never been easier, thanks to the digital banking tools and apps that are out there.
The northern lights are returning to night skies across Canada this Friday
If you missed the brilliant displays of the aurora borealis over North America on May 10, you may have another chance to see them on Friday night.
Mediterranean diet helps women live much longer, a large new study finds
Women who closely followed a Mediterranean diet lived much longer than those who did not, according to a new study that followed more than 25,000 women for 25 years.
A pair enjoyed pricey meals and bolted when it was time to pay. Their dine and dash ended in jail
A Welsh couple who dined out on pricey meals and bolted when the bill came is now paying the price, behind bars.
ANALYSIS Will Donald Trump go to prison? What the precedent says
Now that the jury in Donald Trump's criminal trial has made the historic decision to convict him, the judge overseeing the case will soon face a monumental choice: whether to sentence the 2024 Republican presidential candidate to time behind bars.
Reactions pour in to Donald Trump's first-ever felony conviction for a former U.S. president
After hours of deliberations, a jury of Donald Trump's New York City peers convicted him on 34 counts, making him the first the former U.S. president in history with a felony conviction.