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www.insidehalton.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, September 29, 2017 | 8 Educational assistants' union investigates H alton incident by Tim Whitnell M e tr o la n d W e s t M e d ia The president of the union representing the Halton District School Board's educational assistants is concerned about the recent attack of one of its members by a high school student. Halton police were called to Robert Bateman H.S. in Burlington the morning of Sept. 12 for a report of a student strangling a teacher' s helper in a room inside the New Street school. The incident occurred just after 10 a.m. when a teenaged male student with what police described as "significant intellectual challenges" allegedly attacked a male educational assistant (EA), with the pupil accused of grabbing the EA by the throat. The man was taken to Joseph Brant Hospital as a precaution, but was not injured, say police. No charges were laid. In the aftermath of the incident, the president of the Halton District Educational Assistants Association (HDEAA) sent an email to Metroland West Media voicing her worry. "The situation that unfolded is not acceptable. We thank the staff that intervened and provided assistance. Being safe at work is everyone' s right," said Diana Kay. She noted EAs work closely on a daily basis with many students and are front-line workers. "As a union, for many years we have been advocating, locally and provincially, about supports for educational assistants and violence in the classroom and how that affects educational assistants and the students they work with. Unfortunately, this is not a new issue, and not specific to our location, but a province-wide issue," Kay said. The HDEAA is one of four independent unions in the province that represent educational assistants. The HDSB has budgeted for 8 4 4 .5 full time-equivalent EAs for the 2 0 1 7 -1 8 school year. The total number of EAs employed by the board -- full-time, part-time and casual -- is more than 1,200. Kay said last week that they are looking into the confrontation but wouldn't discuss any similar past incidents or their severity. "The union continues to investigate this situation and provide our supports. The union has complete confidence in the support our members provide and their interactions with students on a daily basis. They are professionals. "W e will continue to collaborate with all stakeholders both locally and provincially to work towards safer learning environments As a union, for many years we have been advocating, locally and provincially, about supports for educational assistants and violence in the classroom and how that affects educational assistants and the students they work with. Unfortunately, this is not a new issue, and not specific to our location, but a province wide issue. w Diana Kay Halton District Educational Assistants Association president for all staff and students." Kay did say she believes EAs don't get paid enough and that there are too few of them in schools in Ontario. "EAs in this board work for seven hours a day and are 10-m onth hourly employees with many who have to have second jobs. We do not get paid during the school breaks; many have to go on unemployment as a necessity if that second income is not a reality." Halton public school board officials wouldn't com m ent about the Bateman incident. "The safety of students and staff is of utmost importance to the board. We don't discuss specific incidents in public in order to protect the privacy of the individuals involved," said superintendent Mark Zonneveld "Whenever an incident occurs that involves concerning student behaviours, a full debriefing is conducted to determine what happened and how we can avoid a future re-occurrence." He said the board doesn't "aggregate this type of incident data." "Careful planning occurs regularly to meet the learning, physical, social, emotional and safety needs of students. These plans are specific to each student and include how staff collaborate to best provide support," added Zonneveld. "School boards across the province, including Halton DSB, employee staff in a variety of roles to support their students. These roles include, but are not limited to, teachers, educational assistants, early childhood educators, principals, vice principals, social workers, child and youth counsellors, psychologists and speech language pathologists. 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