Custodial staff at Calgary’s public school boards have voted overwhelmingly in favour of a strike.
According to a news release from the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), 94.5 per cent of custodial staff at the Calgary Board of Education voted in favour of job action over the weekend. Around 94 per cent of custodial staff at the Calgary Catholic School Division also voted in favour of job action.
The results still have to be certified by the Alberta Labour Relations Board and 72-hour strike notices have not been given at the moment, the union said.
CUPE Alberta President Rory Gill told LWC in an interview on Wednesday that public education in Alberta is underfunded and education support workers are facing a wage crisis throughout the province. The strike votes send a clear message to bargaining teams that workers want good contracts with livable wages.
Custodial staff play important roles in schools by keeping classrooms and school spaces clean and in good order, he added.
“This is a wage crisis. Our members need living wages. I’ve talked to many folks who need two, three, even four jobs just to keep the lights on. It’s not right,” Gill said.
Gill said bargaining teams at both school boards are still trying to negotiate a good contract for their members. CUPE Local 40, which represents 800 custodial staff at the CBE, is currently at the bargaining table.
“We simply cannot accept further poverty wages and, quite honestly, further disrespect from the province. It’s time for the province to properly fund education in Alberta,” Gill said.
CBE, CCSD respond
In an emailed statement to LWC on Wednesday, the CBE said it would be prioritizing in-person learning if a strike were to occur. All CBE schools and buildings will remain open and classes will continue, even though the strike will impact schools and operations.
Bargaining between the CBE and CUPE Local 40 is scheduled for Wednesday and Thursday.
“We value the contributions of all employees who support student success, and we respect the bargaining process. CBE is making best efforts to bargain in good faith and avoid strike action,” the email read.
The CCSD also said schools will remain open during a strike and the school board is working towards a “positive resolution” to the job action.
“The Calgary Catholic School District (CCSD) values and appreciates the contributions of our CUPE employees. It is unfortunate that we have reached this point, and we understand that this situation brings uncertainty for many,” an emailed statement to LWC reads.
“We remain committed to keeping our schools open and maintaining safe and supportive learning environments. We will continue to keep our community informed as we move forward. CCSD is working towards a positive resolution to this job action and continues to pray for all involved.”
Province’s statement ‘a bunch of lies’: CUPE
Gill’s statements come a day after the province published a news release accusing the national CUPE leadership of interfering in negotiations between school boards and CUPE locals.
In a joint statement on Tuesday, Finance Minister Nate Horner and Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides accused CUPE’s Ontario-based leadership of using “tactics of fear and intimidation to prevent deals from being signed.”
Both ministers cited the strikes in Edmonton and Fort McMurray — where 4,000 education support staff have been on strike since the beginning of January — as examples.
“This pattern of behaviour is disturbing and shows that education support workers who do not yet have a deal will not be permitted to vote on one, under fear of deregistration by union leaders in Ontario,” the ministers’ statement read.
“At the end of the day, the antics and disturbing action taken by union leaders in Ontario is causing extremely detrimental effects to learning outcomes for Alberta students. Alberta’s government and school boards have shown up to the table to find a path forward, but CUPE National leaders clearly have ulterior motives that are not in the best interests of their members or Alberta students.”
Gill called the government’s statement ‘a bunch of lies’. While there is Ontario leadership at the national level, they do not tell local unions how to bargain, nor do they tell locals how to run their strike actions.
“CUPE is a union that’s focused very much on our local unions. That is our strength. We’re a bottom-up union,” he said.
“We focus on the workplace, we focus on the work sites, and it’s our members who make decisions on bargaining and whether they’re going to go back or not.”
