Province back to table with ‘improved offer’ for education workers: Ford
Posted November 8, 2022 10:21 am.
Last Updated November 8, 2022 3:56 pm.
As talks resume Tuesday, Premier Doug Ford says his government is back at the bargaining table with an “improved offer” for education workers.
Ford wouldn’t offer any specifics on the new offer but said his government’s latest proposal to the Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE) is particularly improved for the lowest-paid school support staff.
Ford cautioned that any agreement would have an impact on the four major teachers’ contracts also in bargaining, and increases for CUPE could lead to “tens of billions of dollars” for increases to the teachers, and he needs to watch Ontario’s bottom line.
“I don’t want to fight. I just want the kids in school,” Ford said during a media availability at Queen’s Park on Tuesday morning alongside Education Minister Stephen Lecce.
“Just as we are listening to CUPE, we also need CUPE to listen to us.”
A government source tells CityNews the new offer presented to CUPE for education support staff is an increase of 3.5 per cent a year for the province’s lowest-paid workers, which is up from 2.5 per cent in the last offer, and closer to two per cent for higher-paid workers; up from 1.5 per cent a year.
NEW: government source tells me new offer presented to CUPE for education support staff is 3.5% increase/yr for lowest paid workers (up from 2.5% from last offer) and closer to 2% for higher paid workers (up from 1.5%/yr) Source says gov trying to tone temperature down. #onpoli
— Cynthia Mulligan (@CityCynthia) November 8, 2022
The government had originally offered raises of two per cent a year for workers making less than $40,000 and 1.25 per cent for all others.
The four-year deal imposed by the province’s back-to-work legislation gave 2.5 per cent annual raises to workers making less than $43,000 and 1.5 per cent raises for all others.
Lecce says he hopes the latest offer from the Ford government is the one that can finally land a deal.
“A deal we always wanted achieve voluntarily that protects the in-person learning experience but increases wages to the lowest income worker in our schools,” he says.
The union says it stands ready to strike again if talks don’t go in the direction they like, but they would need to give five-days notice. Bargaining resumed at 10 a.m. Tuesday morning through a mediator.
The more than 50,000 education workers, including education assistants, librarians and custodians, returned to work on Tuesday, a day after the union called off their job action in response to the province offering to repeal its legislation imposing a contract on them.
“I’m so relieved that CUPE accepted our offer,” Ford said. “Kids are back in class, exactly where they belong.”
Before a scheduled CUPE news conference Monday morning, Ford stated his willingness to revoke Bill 28 and stop the use of the notwithstanding clause if the workers agreed to return to work.
Union officials said they received confirmation in writing that the province would follow through with rescinding the bill before they agreed to end their strike.
Ford says legislation to repeal Bill 28 will be tabled on Nov. 14. The opposition NDP is calling for MPPs to gather to veto the bill right away.
The province controversially included the notwithstanding clause in its legislation that banned strikes and imposed a four-year contract on union members, saying it intended to use the clause to guard against constitutional challenges.
The workers walked off the job last Friday despite the law banning them from doing so, and the government had taken them to the Ontario Labour Relations Board on the legality of the job action.
The job action forced most Ontario schools to pivot to virtual learning on Friday and Monday. School boards across the GTA confirmed in-person learning would resume on Tuesday.
With files from Cynthia Mulligan and The Canadian Press
