Several Windsor-Essex union locals representing school support staff have scheduled strike votes as the new school year gets underway.
The Ontario School Board Council of Unions (OSBCU), the umbrella union for locals representing support staff, has confirmed that the first strike vote is set for Wednesday night at the Ciociaro Club in Tecumseh. Members of CUPE 1358, which represents support personnel at the Windsor Essex Catholic District School Board (WECDSB), will decide on strike authorization.
Darlene Sawchuk, president of CUPE 1358, said that this affects a wide-ranging group of staff.
"We represent educational assistants, early childhood educators, speech and language pathologists, psychotherapists, psychologists, audiologists, sign language interpreters, child and youth workers, attendance councillors, basically all the support staff for the WECDSB with the exception of secretarial, custodial and maintenance and IT," said Sawchuk in an email to Blackburn News Wednesday.
The OSBCU has also confirmed that members of CUPE 27, which represents custodial staff with the Greater Essex County District School Board (GECDSB), will take a strike vote Saturday morning; and CUPE 1348, which represents office and technical staff with the public board, has a vote scheduled for September 12.
The council of unions has been negotiating new contracts for some time now. At its leadership meeting last month in Toronto, the OSBCU announced they had filed for conciliation, which is an indication that both sides are far apart. Laura Walton, president of the OSBCU, said in an open letter to parents of schoolchildren across Ontario that they are trying to address potential staff shortages that may be the result of planned cuts and increased class sizes by the provincial government.
"CUPE is negotiating now with the province and representatives of Ontario’s school boards for a contract that tackles these deficiencies," said Walton. "Yes, we want a better deal for our members, and not just because we earn an average of $38,000 a year, but because we have children too. And we believe that all families want and support high-quality services that help children thrive and that CUPE education workers provide."
The Ontario Ministry of Education had previously announced a plan to increase class sizes in secondary schools from an average of 22 students to 28, but Education Minister Stephen Lecce said the government had listened to concerns from educators, parents and students and has scaled back that plan.
"I am determined to put our students first and listen to those we serve,” said Lecce. “I want to reassure students and their families that this September class sizes will remain effectively the same as last year."
Two additional strike votes are set for Saturday morning in Dresden, involving members of CUPE 1238, which represents support staff at the Lambton-Kent District School Board, and CUPE 4168, for support staff at the St. Clair Catholic District School Board.
Stephen Fields, the communications coordinator with the WECDSB, previously told Blackburn News that the board "remains hopeful that negotiations between all education sector unions and their provincial counterparts are productive."
Scott Scantlebury, public relations officer for the GECDSB, declined comment, calling a strike vote "a part of the process."
