One-hundred and forty-two Parks Canada staff in Newfoundland and Labrador have been told their jobs are on the line as the federal government plans to trim back park employees across the country.
That’s more than half of all Parks Canada staff in Newfoundland and Labrador, and a substantial percentage of the 500 jobs the federal government is looking to cut.
Tourism Critic Bettina Ford questioned the provincial minister responsible, Mike Goosney, in the House of Assembly.
Ford says the layoffs have the potential to “drastically undermine the visitor experience” at some of the province’s most iconic attractions.
MHA Bettina Ford and Minister Mike Goosney (NL HoA/YouTube)
She asked Goosney for his plan to protect those jobs.
The minister says he’s already written the federal government, and his staff have also reached out.
“I implore the federal government to look at this decision.”
He noted that Prime Minister Mark Carney recently paid a visit to his district “and he must see the beauty and must see the importance of it.”
He invited the opposition parties to work with government to help protect those jobs.
