Violence against Winnipeg School Division staff spiking: union

Violence is becoming far too common for school support staff in the Winnipeg School Division. Every day you have to get up in the morning and wonder, am I going to get spit on, am I going to get my hair pulled, am I going to get bit, head butted? It's not a thing that most people have to think about when they're walking into their job. Data from the division shows a large spike in violent incidents towards staff by students. The Manitoba Government and General Employees Union president, Kyle Ross, says the violence is making it harder for staff to do their job. These EAs interact directly with young students trying to learn and trying to help everyone else learn too. And they're facing all this violence. It's kind of frustrating to see it going the wrong way. Data shared by the Winnipeg School Division shows student-related aggression incidents jumped from 884 in the 2022-2023 school year to 1,925 incidents in the 2025-2026 school year, a 118% increase. The data also shows that at least 98% of the incidents each year were directed towards EA staff. It's not okay to be injured in the workplace. The Winnipeg School Division says it's already taking steps to make schools safer. Superintendent Matt Henderson says they've hired more staff and reduced class sizes to make teaching more manageable. Putting things in place to make sure that staff are safe as it relates to supporting children who are neurodiverse or with intellectual disabilities or physical disabilities Because at the end of the day, every child belongs in a public education system. One expert says violent incidents in schools have been on the rise for years. Darby Mallory is from the University of Ottawa's Criminology Department and researches violence in schools. She says this round of data shows something important. We are not just talking about students with exceptionalities or students who are higher in needs. Rates of violence are high across the board. Mallory says a decrease in school funding is another big contributor to the rise in violence. violence. MGEU has roughly 1,900 members who work in Winnipeg division schools, and the union wants to see consistency across all schools to ensure workers are safe. Mike Arsenault, CBC News, Winnipeg.