The Saskatchewan Government and General Employees’ Union says a report released by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives portrays the Saskatchewan government as leaving behind millions of dollars of federal funding meant to support Saskatchewan families through the COVID-19 crisis.

The SGEU says the report indicates the government has not spent almost $50 million worth of federal funding earmarked for wage top-ups for essential workers.

SGEU Secretary Treasurer Roseann Strelezki says, “Premier Scott Moe is letting thousands of front-line workers down as Saskatchewan case numbers continue to climb.” She says, “It is unacceptable that the Premier has left so much federal funding on the table and failed to fund additional supports at the provincial level.”

The union also says that the Saskatchewan government has been extremely reluctant to come forward with investments of its own, saying the province is picking up only 10% of the cost of COVID-19 response measures, while the federal government is covering the other 90%.