CUPE Announces Potential Strike On Monday If Deal Not Struck With Ontario Government
/The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) is set to strike again on Monday after rejecting the Ford government’s negotiation offers and citing that the proposed contract would “further harm” Ontario schools.
CUPE workers originally had a strike on Nov. 4 and continued on Nov. 6. Photo By David Tuan Bui.
Laura Walton, president of the CUPE school board’s bargaining unit, said the union has given its notice of a province-wide strike for Monday.
“From the beginning, we’ve been focused on improved jobs for education workers and improved services for students. For us, there is no one without the other,” said Walton. “It’s incredibly disappointing that the Ford government categorically refused to put money on the table to give students the type of learning environment they need.”
The Peterborough Victoria Northumberland and Clarington Catholic District School Board (PVNCCDSB) has Tweeted that they intend to strike Monday if a deal is not reached.
CUPE, the union representing support workers in our Board, has provided notice that it intends to commence a strike (full withdrawal of services) on Monday, Nov. 21, 2022 if it does not reach a central agreement with the provincial government before then.
— PVNCCDSB (@PVNCCDSB) November 16, 2022
The School Boards Collective Bargaining Act requires that school board workers give five days’ notice before striking.
On Nov. 7, the Premiere Doug Ford said they would repeal Bill 28 which stripped the ability to strike and deem it illegal if the CUPE would cease all striking action. CUPE agreed to withdraw and go back to the bargaining table to renegotiate.
Schools had re-opened for students after two days from the CUPE strikes that consists of roughly 55,000 workers.
CUPE’s Ontario School Boards Council of Unions (OSBCU) central bargaining committee has been negotiating for 167 days. During this time, they have made progress on the wage front, having reached a reported “middle ground” with the Ford government and the Council of Trustees’ Associations (CTA) on wage negotiations.
CUPE workers had been advocating for a six per cent wage increase, down from their original ask of 11.7 per cent over four years. They are also seeking more full-time staff in schools.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce expressed “disappointment” that negotiations with CUPE have failed, noting that this strike notice was issued only a few days after talks restarted.
“We are disappointed that only a few short days after talks restarted, CUPE has filed notice to once again shut down classrooms. Since resuming talks, we’ve put forward multiple improved offers that would have added hundreds of millions of dollars across the sector, especially for lower-income workers,” he said in a Tweet. “CUPE has rejected all of these offers. We are at the table ready to land a fair deal that invests more in lower-income workers and keeps kids in class.”
We offered $335 million more over four years for CUPE workers alone.
— Stephen Lecce (@Sflecce) November 16, 2022
So, why are we here? pic.twitter.com/QZFxQ8Iu9r
