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The Saskatchewan government is laying off more than 250 of its custodial workers, according to the union representing them.

“These are the lowest paid people in government,” says Bob Bymoen, president of the Saskatchewan Government and General Employees’ Union (SGEU). “I’m quite in shock, and I can’t say how concerned I am for these 251 employees and their families.”

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Employees, according to Bymoen, have been told the custodial work will be put up for tender and privately contracted out.

The province is putting out a request for a proposal for cleaning services on Thursday, one day after government employees were informed of the decision.

In a statement, the province said that the government is in the early stages of a process “to examine if there is a value in transitioning cleaning services for government buildings across the province to the private sector.”

A tender for cleaning services at SGI’s head office was sent out last week.