Threat of CUPE strike frustrates parents and students
The threat of a strike by education workers next Monday has parents and students feeling frustrated at the prospect of schools shutting down, again, and learning switching to online.
On Wednesday, the Canadian Union of Public Employees, which represents 55,000 school support staff in Ontario, said if a contract agreement with the province isn't reached by Monday it will engage in a full strike - an announcement that comes nearly two weeks after members walked off the job for two days.
The union, whose members include educational assistants, clerical staff, custodians and early childhood educators, says wages are no longer the key issue, but that it wants more staff in schools.
School boards are busy making contingency plans. Toronto's public and Catholic boards have announced that if a deal isn't reached, they will close schools starting Monday and move to remote learning.
Toronto mother Patricia Ocampo is frustrated and anxious" that a deal can't be reached because she worries it will impact students' education and exacerbate pandemic-related learning loss.
I'm frustrated that the grown-ups in the room can't figure it out for our kids' sake," said Ocampo, whose girls are in Grades 2 and 5. We're all aware of the education loss that happened during the pandemic. So any more time that we lose from instruction feels like a huge loss. It feels like we're continuing to go backwards when we're already behind."
Her daughters don't like virtual learning, but they will be logging on, says Ocampo, because, Any connection they can keep with their teachers and students is so important."
They're going to be really frustrated and upset. And it's just going to cause so many problems, especially for working parents," said Ocampo, who works from home as a children's book editor, adding it'll be tough to juggle work, while helping them with online learning.
Still, Ocampo backs the union because she says she supports consistency for children, high-quality support and more full-time staff in schools.
One Toronto parent, who is also an elementary school teacher and asked not to be identified by name, worries how the threat of a second strike will go over with parents.
Public support will at some point diminish," she said, adding the government should have put money to CUPE instead of its $200-$250 catch-up payments to parents to pay for tutoring.
On Nov. 4 and 7, CUPE workers were off the job after talks broke down with the province, which used the notwithstanding clause" to override Charter rights and impose a contract. That sparked backlash from labour unions, educators and parents and forced most boards to close schools to in-person learning. The province agreed to rescind that legislation and CUPE members returned to work, with both sides resuming negotiations. On Wednesday they hit an impasse.
Toronto mother Logan Wilson, whose daughters are in Junior Kindergarten and Grade 2, supports the union and thinks the government is taking advantage of desperate parents and hoping to pit them against CUPE."
Wilson welcomes the strike, even though it's totally not convenient" because she works from home, where she designs and sews children's clothing. While she won't be scrambling for child care, like many parents in the province, there's no way she'll be able to get any work done with her girls at home, neither of whom will participate in remote learning because it's not good for my kids' mental health."
Similarly, Toronto social worker Sara Marlowe, who supports the union, won't subject her kids, in Grades 2 and 7, to online learning. During the last CUPE strike, she says her daughter screamed and started crying" at the thought of it, noting, It was traumatizing."
We're not doing online school. It's not effective. It's not developmentally appropriate," said Marlowe. I hear from so many parents whose kids have really struggled with it."
With files from Kristin Rushowy
Isabel Teotonio is a Toronto-based reporter covering education for the Star. Follow her on Twitter: @Izzy74