Ontario repeals law that banned education workers from striking

The union for education support workers is “relieved” Bill 28 has been scrapped. Cynthia Mulligan reports.

By The Canadian Press and Michael Talbot

Ontario has repealed a law that imposed a contract on education workers and banned them from striking.

The province passed the legislation on Nov. 3 in a bid to prevent 55,000 workers from the Canadian Union of Public Employees from striking.

But thousands of workers, including education assistants, librarians and custodians, walked off the job anyway, shutting hundreds of schools to in-person learning for two days.

Last week, Ontario Premier Doug Ford offered to withdraw the legislation if CUPE members returned to work, which they did.

The government’s law, which used the notwithstanding clause to guard against constitutional challenges, had set fines for violating the legislation at a maximum of $4,000 per employee per day and up to $500,000 per day for the union.

The two sides are back at the bargaining table.


Related: Education workers will not accept reported ‘improved offer’ from Ford: CUPE


Laura Walton, president of CUPE’s Ontario School Boards Council of Unions, celebrated the development, saying the controversial law should have never been introduced in the first place.

“This afternoon, Ontario’s education workers have their rights back,” Walton said in a statement. “With the shadow of Bill 28 lifted, education workers can now focus on achieving a fairly negotiated collective agreement that meets the needs of students, families, and workers.”

“This law should never have been adopted. Bill 28 imposed a four-year concessionary contract that would have pushed more of us into poverty while stripping us of our Charter rights, human rights, and any legal avenue to fight back,” added Walton. “Students and parents need funding guarantees to ensure services are being provided in schools.”

Walton hinted that the government will have to bend more on wages to get a deal done, saying boards are having trouble hiring and retaining staff because of “poverty-level wages.”

“There is a crisis in our schools because no one wants to work for poverty-level wages, be laid off for months every year, and be continuously disrespected and undervalued by the government.”

“With high inflation forcing more education workers to use foodbanks or choose between their rent or their car payment, we need a significant wage increase just to get by.”

A government source told CityNews last week that the province’s latest offer presented a 3.5 per cent annual increase for the lowest-paid workers and a closer to two per cent increase for higher-paid workers.

Those numbers are up from 2.5 per cent and 1.5 per cent as part of the four-year deal imposed by the province’s now-repealed back-to-work legislation.

When asked how negotiations have been going during a Monday afternoon news conference, Walton said: “It’s been slow because up to a couple of hours ago, we had an imposed collective agreement.”

Walton reiterated the union would not accept a two-tier offer.

“What will actually work is a flat rate increase,” she stressed.

As for the government’s use of the notwithstanding clause, Walton said it “should never happen again.”

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association agrees, releasing a statement Monday saying it “should never have been introduced and was an affront to the rights and freedoms of every person in Canada.”

“The Premier of Ontario must commit today – publicly and in writing, to never invoke the notwithstanding clause again.”

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