Ontario has passed legislation that outlaws the strike of 55,000 education workers represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees and imposes a contract on them.
Workers are expected to walk off the job Friday after mediation between the Ontario government and the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) failed to reach an agreement. There is no word on when the industrial action will end. School boards are advising parents to make alternative child care plans next week.
Union leaders said education workers would stop working “until our members decide otherwise.”
“We’re on strike until this government recognizes that you can enforce all the legislation, but you can’t control a labor movement that is so fed up with your reach,” said Laura Walton, president of CUPE’s Ontario School Council. Trade unions.
Walton said parents should “definitely” make alternative childcare arrangements beyond Friday.
The government “had no choice,” says Lecce
Education Minister Stephen Lecce said the government had no choice but to proceed with its legislation, which includes the nevertheless clause that allows the legislature to override parts of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms during a period of five years.
“For the benefit of Ontario’s two million students, to keep classrooms open, CUPE has left us with no choice but to pass the Keeping Kids in Class Act,” he said.
“It is my hope and expectation that they will show up tomorrow for our children,” Lecce said, saying the union would not rescind its intention to strike when the two sides return to the bargaining table.
LOOK | CUPE members protest during the final vote on the bill:
Ford skips final vote on bill banning strike by education workers
Supporters of Ontario education workers protested on the dais of the provincial legislature Thursday, moments after Premier Doug Ford missed a final vote to pass legislation that would outlaw the strike of 55,000 workers of education and imposed a contract on them.
Lecce said he has ordered school boards to do “everything possible” to keep as many schools open for as many students as possible, and has asked staff to be on the job to provide “live learning” in case of a strike
The legislation will make the strike illegal
Bill 28 will make the strike illegal, although CUPE has said workers will walk off the job on Friday regardless. Among those taking part in the strike are preschool teachers, teaching assistants and guards.
“What applies today is a law, it’s not an agreement. An agreement is something that two parties collectively come to and agree to. This is a bullying tactic,” Walton told a conference of the press on Thursday.
When asked if Lecce understood the impact of using the however clause to preemptively stop a strike, the Education Minister said he is “aware” of the level of disruption children have faced in the last years
“This is not a normal time in society,” Lecce said.
Education Minister Stephen Lecce confirmed Thursday afternoon that negotiations between the province and CUPE have concluded without an agreement. (Carlos Osorio/CBC)
The Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU) said today that its 8,000 education workers will also walk off the job Friday in solidarity with their CUPE counterparts. Its largest contingent of members is in Peel and York district school boards, which have already said the strike would close schools.
The Toronto District School Board, the largest in the province, says it will keep schools closed for the duration of the strike because it cannot guarantee the safety of students. Many other boards in the province are also planning to close schools or switch to remote learning by Friday.
The Elementary Teachers’ Federation of Ontario (ETFO) and the Ontario Secondary School Teachers’ Federation (OSSTF), which are in negotiations with the government, said they did not have similar walkout plans but were encouraging members to join CUPE picket lines before and after work.
The ETFO president said the union was lobbying lawmakers and reaching out to parents and community groups to rally support for CUPE.
“This is such a blatant attack on democracy and our democratic rights at this particular time,” said Karen Brown.
“We are working … to look at what some options are, what is available and how we can continue to support [education workers] and put pressure on this government.”
Education workers deserve a ‘living wage’, says father
A group called the Ontario Parent Action Network held an emergency demonstration outside the Sheraton Center Toronto hotel on Thursday to show support for education workers.
“I’m very concerned about the use of the notwithstanding clause in the charter and the impact it could have on Canadians … it’s worth fighting for,” said Megan McCrossan, a parent who attended the rally.
“I think education workers deserve a living wage,” said McCrossan, whose son’s school in Toronto will close Friday.
A group called the Ontario Parent Action Network held a rally outside the Sheraton Center Toronto hotel Thursday evening ahead of a planned walkout of CUPE education workers scheduled for Friday. (CBC)
Meanwhile, barriers were erected outside Queen’s Park on Thursday afternoon ahead of the planned strike. Walton said the union intends to picket the MPP offices on Friday.
OPSEU president JP Hornick said the government’s proposed legislation is undemocratic.
“Bill 28 is not just an attack on the collective bargaining rights of education workers, it is an attack on the rights of all workers,” Hornick said in a statement.
That sentiment was echoed by representatives of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA), who held an emergency press conference at Queen’s Park this morning.
“By imposing a contract, banning strikes and removing meaningful oversight, the government is violating workers’ Charter right to freedom of association. This is unacceptable and completely unnecessary,” said Noa Mendelsohn Aviv, executive director and director general of the organization.
Ministry to pursue fines if the strike continues: Lecce
Premier Doug Ford, who was not present during the final vote on Bill 28, said Thursday the union left him with “no choice” but to introduce Bill 28. He said students already have suffered two years of pandemic disruptions and the government. will use every tool at its disposal to ensure that children stay in class full time.
The province’s legislation includes heavy fines if workers fail to comply. A Lecce spokesman said the ministry intends to pursue fines if the strike continues.
Walton has said the union would foot the bill for sanctions imposed on workers and has suggested CUPE is seeking outside financial help from other labor groups.
Barricades were erected outside Queen’s Park Thursday afternoon ahead of a planned strike scheduled for Friday after no agreement was reached between the Ontario government and the union representing 55,000 education workers. (Robert Krbavac/CBC)
The government initially offered annual increases of two per cent for workers earning less than $40,000 and 1.25 per cent for others, but says the new four-year deal imposed would give annual increases of 2.5 per cent cent to workers earning less than $43,000 and 1.5 percent. it goes up percent for everyone else.
CUPE has said the framing is inaccurate because the increases actually depend on hourly wages and pay scales, so most workers earning less than $43,000 in a year would not get 2.5 per cent .
The union has said its workers, who earn an average of $39,000 a year, are generally the lowest paid at schools and have been seeking annual wage increases of 11.7 percent.