A looming labor shortage has led some Canadian universities to spice up their hiring efforts. The province of Ontario is seeking $350 million for a recruiting drive, while Quebec is offering a 5-year income tax holiday to scholars who relocate to institutions within la belle province.
The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations (OCUFA) recently estimated that 15,000 new professors--more than the number now employed--will be needed over the next decade by provincial universities to cope with retirements and a projected 40% jump in enrollment. Government budget cutbacks have already led to skyrocketing student-to-faculty ratios, says McMaster University political scientist and OCUFA president Henry Jacek. "The situation is bad and every day it gets worse."
But Jacek opposes tax holidays as a recruiting lure, saying they engender "animosity" within faculties and encourage professors to move away temporarily to be eligible for the break. He believes the long-term solution "is increased operating grants" from the government.
