Violence rising inside Canadian schools

A new national report is raising urgent concerns about violence and harassment directed at educators in Canadian schools. The findings suggest that many classrooms and school workplaces are becoming increasingly unsafe for the people who work in them.

Released in February 2026, the report “Canadian Schools: A Hazardous Place” was produced by the Violence and Harassment Against Educators Project. The research examines workplace violence and harassment experienced by education workers across Canada, with a particular focus on Ontario.

According to the project’s website the initiative aims to investigate and shed light on the workplace harassment and violence experienced by educators and support staff in Ontario elementary and secondary schools. The report draws on a subset of responses from the National Violence and Harassment Against the Educator Sector Survey.

Researchers analyzed survey data from 4,266 education sector workers affiliated with the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE). The study was conducted by researchers from the School of Psychology and the Department of Criminology at the University of Ottawa and funded by the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

Participants in the survey represented a range of ages, genders, racial identities, disability statuses, sexual orientations, and years of experience in the education sector. Respondents were asked about incidents of workplace violence, including acts, attempts, or threats of physical force, as well as harassment such as insults, slurs, and other forms of verbal abuse.

The survey examined four potential sources of such behaviour: students, parents, colleagues, and school administrators or supervisors. Respondents reported incidents that occurred during the 2022–2023 school year.

Most survey participants worked in Ontario (71%). Others were located in British Columbia (17%), Saskatchewan (9%), and other provinces and territories (3%).

The results reveal troubling patterns across the sector. Seventy-eight per cent of respondents reported experiencing at least one act, attempt, or threat of violence in the workplace. Harassment was even more widespread. On average, 84% of participants reported experiencing approximately 30 incidents of harassment each year.

The psychological impact of these experiences appears significant. Twenty-six per cent of respondents reported symptoms similar to post-traumatic stress disorder, while nearly 80 per cent said workplace violence had harmed their mental health.

Dr. Darcy Santor, a psychology professor at the University of Ottawa involved in the project, emphasized the seriousness of the findings.

Researchers say the problem is not confined to interactions with students. Survey responses indicate that harassment and violence can also come from parents, colleagues, and school administrators.

The survey also found disparities in reported experiences among racialized educators. Although only about five per cent of respondents identified as racialized educators, 8.5% of them reported experiencing violence, compared with 5.5% of White respondents. Racialized educators also reported slightly higher rates of violence from administrators or supervisors.

Perhaps the most alarming finding relates to the long-term impact on the education workforce. Roughly half of respondents said they were considering leaving the profession in order to escape these working conditions.

The report’s authors conclude that the level of violence and harassment documented in the survey represents a serious workplace safety issue. As the report states, “Violence and harassment in Canadian schools have reached such crisis levels that these public institutions should be categorized as hazardous places.”

Researchers recommend several steps to address the problem. These include improving how workplace hazards are identified, implementing stronger safety planning and reporting systems, and expanding access to mental-health support for educators and school staff.

The report also highlights the need for consistent national attention to the issue. Without systemic responses, the consequences could extend beyond educators themselves.

Unsafe working conditions in schools affect recruitment, retention, and the overall stability of the education system. When educators leave the profession, students and communities also feel the impact.