Dozens of Lord Beaverbrook High School students walked out in support of Canadian Union of Public Employee workers on Thursday afternoon, demanding the Calgary Board of Education and the Alberta government to pay custodial workers a living wage.
CUPE Local 40 members, which represents about 800 custodial and maintenance staff at the Board of Education, have been on strike since Feb. 24 after an overwhelming majority voted in favour of job action last month. They join 350 employees at the CCSD – who are represented by CUPE Local 520 – after strike notices were issued on Wednesday, Feb. 19.
The unions have repeatedly said custodial workers are facing a wage crisis, and they have been left with no other options but to strike. The union also said many are forced to work multiple jobs to feed their families and pay their bills.
Kianna Grobowsky, a student at Lord Beaverbrook High School, said the custodial staff have the right to protest for better wages and she’s joining the picket line to show her support for the employees who keep her school clean.
“If people are trying to support their families and they’re not getting paid enough, they deserve to have the right to protest,” she told LiveWire Calgary.
“If they’re working for the amount of money they’re getting, there’s no point … If I was working and I was getting paid like this, I would also want to protest because nobody should have to feel like they can’t support their families.”
Lord Beaverbrook High School students Daimon MacDonald and Connor Kreschu told LWC that the custodial workers deserve a raise.
Previously, CUPE Local 40 President Clay Gordon told LWC custodial workers at the CBE got their first increase in 10 years in 2024. However, he said the increase was minimal because of inflation.
“We need these janitors, and if they believe they’re not getting paid enough, then they should get a raise, because that’s not right. They do a lot of hard work around the school,” Kreschu said.
MacDonald said the learning environment at Lord Beaverbrook High School has been “hectic” since the maintenance workers went on strike. However, he acknowledged that the point of a strike is to prove that these workers are essential.
A lot of the bathrooms are closed because there are no custodial staff to maintain and take care of them, he and Kreschu said.
“The teachers are also getting affected by the [strike]. At the same time, the schooling isn’t bad. The teachers are very good at teaching, but everyone’s a little bit stressed out right now,” he said.
“I want them to realize the harsh reality that our janitors are really in, because it’s very difficult for them to live day by day and able to pay their bills when they have no choice but to work like this.”
