Sturgeon Public students may have to walk past picket lines this Monday due to a potential strike by school support workers.
CUPE Local 4625 issued a 72-hour strike notice on Jan. 9. The union represents the 225 educational assistants and other support workers in Sturgeon Public Schools. The notice means that these workers could go on strike as early as Monday Jan. 13.
Sturgeon Public support workers voted 94 per cent of strike action last Oct. 25, which put them in a position to go on strike with 72 hours of notice.
CUPE Local 4625 president Kelly Salisbury said workers held off on the strike until now in hopes their demands would be met, but that hasn’t happened.
“We don’t want to make anything difficult or unpleasant for anybody, especially students,” she said in a Jan. 10 interview.
“We’re just trying to get our point across that we need more funding in the schools.”
Salisbury said the local’s main demand was for the province to increase school funding so support workers could get a living wage. The average wage amongst members was $34,000 a year. Many had gone 10 years without a raise despite about 30 per cent inflation in the last decade, and were working two or three jobs to make ends meet. The low pay also contributed to high turnover and staff shortages, both of which affected students.
“It’s just not sustainable anymore,” she said.
Student impacts
Salisbury said the local planned to hold a “soft strike” to minimize its effects on students. This would see support staff hold demonstrations at all Sturgeon Public schools from 7:30 a.m. to 9 a.m. before heading in to work for the rest of the day. As most schools start classes at around 8:30 a.m., this should not have a major effect on instruction.
Salisbury said union members would hold demonstrations at their local schools away from entrances so students would not have to cross any picket lines. She was not sure when the strike would end, but predicted other school districts would see similar labour action unless the province addressed this funding issue.
In a letter to parents sent Jan. 9 by Sturgeon Public superintendent Shawna Warren, Sturgeon Public officials said their schools would remain open during the strike. As of Jan. 13, morning pre-K programs would be pushed back to 9:15 a.m. and would not have busing available until further notice. The strike may also affect extracurricular and joint-use activities. Some students with complex needs may be asked to stay home if supports were unavailable. Parents should set aside more time to pick up and drop off students due to potential delays from picketing.
About 3,000 Edmonton Public educational support staff were also poised to go on strike on Monday. About a thousand Fort McMurray education support workers have been on strike since November.
The Gazette will have more on this potential strike as it develops.
