More than 20K people apply to work Alberta's fall referendum

Elections Alberta making recruitment push in rural communities

A month after launching a recruitment campaign seeking workers for the October referendum, Elections Alberta says it’s received more than 20,000 applications, with a goal of hiring at least 60,000 people.

Applicants will be screened, and those who have already applied should start learning in the coming days if they're successful.

Elections Alberta spokesperson Maia Hanrahan said the "recruitment campaign is progressing well," with the expectation they will be able to fill all the roles needed by referendum day Oct. 19.

Ads are running on radio and online, and Elections Alberta is asking returning officers to aid the search for recruits in their own municipalities by reaching out to local residents and organizations.

‘Colossal undertaking’: Elections Alberta recruiting 60K people to work fall referendum

There is a particular push to recruit enough workers outside of the province's larger cities.

"We definitely have a rural focus and that's just because the smaller population sizes in those areas could mean fewer potential candidates," Hanrahan said.

Elections Alberta expects this to be one of the largest recruitment efforts in Canada for a referendum, offering the comparison that the 1995 Quebec referendum saw 57,000 electoral workers.

A large contingent of workers is needed in part because all ballots will need to be hand-counted, as per provincial rules. The goal is to have unofficial results within 48 hours, Hanrahan said.

Elections Alberta will print 45 million colour-coded ballots, with one of the 10 referendum questions per ballot.

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On top of the pile of ballots will be the question related to separation, which asks Albertans if they want the province to remain in Canada, or if they support the province starting the legal process of holding a binding referendum on separation. The other nine questions relate to immigration and the Canadian constitution.

Anyone interested in becoming an electoral worker must be at least 16 years old (or 18, for some roles) and eligible to work in Canada.

Recruits are needed for a variety of roles, including site supervisors, counting officers and ballot box clerks.

Training will be paid, as will hours worked during the referendum. A counting officer, for example, will earn $75 for training and $20/hour for their time counting.

Anyone interested can apply online. Hanrahan said applications will remain open in the months ahead as Elections Alberta works to fill its quota.

Jennifer is a reporter with CBC Calgary. Previously, she worked for CTV News in Toronto. You can reach her at jennifer.keiller@cbc.ca