Ontario Education Workers Threaten Another Strike After Talks Break Down

CUPE (Canadian Union of Public Employees) education workers strike on the picket line in Kingston, Ont., on Nov. 4, 2022. (The Canadian Press/Lars Hagberg)

One day after an anti-strike law was repealed by the Ontario government, the union representing education support staff in the province has again delivered a five-day strike notice to the government, saying they will walk off the job because contract talks have broken down.

A strike could shut down schools on Nov. 21, for the second time this month, if both sides cannot come to a deal on a new contract.

The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), and its affiliate the Ontario School Board Council of Unions (OSBCU), is the union representing 55,000 education support staff which includes janitors, early childhood educators, librarians, and education assistants.

According to CUPE, a general consensus on wage increases emerged from negotiations, but the union is also demanding the province “invest in the services that students need and parents expect.”

Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce, pictured during a March 8, 2022 announcement at the Ontario Science Centre, says a strike disrupts kids who need to be in school. (Frank Gunn/The Canadian Press)

“We know the impact on children of disruptions, from a mental, physical and academic perspective. They’re not part of the discussion often from the union side,” the province’s Education Minister Stephen Lecce told reporters on Nov. 16 at Queen’s Park. He said the union needs to reflect on “how these disruptions impact working people and their kids. And it shouldn’t be a casual thing you do every other week.”

Lecce said the government offered hundreds of millions of dollars in wage increases, with “multiple improved offers,” especially for lower-income workers, but the union decided to proceed to a strike.

Leece said the government “wants kids in the classroom.”

CUPE spokesperson Laura Walton said at a news conference today in Toronto that the government offered workers a $1/hour raise for each year of a new collective agreement, roughly working out to a 3.95 percent raise, but said they can pay more.

“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,” she said.

Besides wage increases, CUPE is also demanding higher numbers of education assistants and other education workers, and additional support staff, such as one education assistant in every kindergarten classroom.

The Ontario government initially passed Bill 28, anti-strike legislation using the notwithstanding clause, on Nov. 3, in an attempt to keep schools open. Despite the threat of high fines, education workers still walked off the job for two full days, shutting down multiple schools for in-person learning.

Premier Doug Ford agreed to rescind the bill if workers returned to schools and continued to negotiate.