2 - Southpoint Sun
Wednesday, November 9, 2022
Dozens show up for support
CUPE members hold protest
Pictured left to right are local educational assistants Teresa Longo and Dorothy Gillett (Cardinal Carter Catholic Secondary School) and Charlotte McQueen (St. Louis Catholic Elementary School). SUN photo by Paul Forman
SANTA CLAUS PARADE AND F.O.L OPENING CEREMONIES Saturday, November 19, 2022, 5:00 pm Parade begins at Jasperson & Main, followed by lighting kick-off at Lakeside Park. Virtual Scavenger Hunt Christmas Artisan Markets
Paws and Claus Crafts with Santa
By Paul Forman There was a sea of purple t-shirts and plenty of horns honking outside of MPP Trevor Jones’ Leamington constituency office on Friday, November 4 as the Canadian Union of Public Employees, (CUPE) members engaged in a ‘political protest’ in response to the passing of Bill 28, the Keeping Students in Class Act 2022, by the provincial legislature. Over a hundred CUPE members, including support staff, ECEs, child and youth workers, custodians, educational assistants, secretaries and librarians, among others, walked up and down Erie Street North holding signs promoting ‘student success and good jobs’. Walking along with CUPE members were also some parents and teachers from local area school boards. Bill 28 imposes a fouryear contract on over 5,5000 Ontario educational support workers making it illegal for them to strike. The unprecedented use of the not-
withstanding clause for this purpose allows the government to override certain portions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Human Rights Code for a five-year time period. The use of this clause has been sharply criticized by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau as “wrong and inappropriate.” “This is something all Canadians who value the freedoms, the rights, the opportunities that Canada gives them and gives us all, should be standing up to be very concerned about,” Trudeau told reporters during a news conference in North York on Friday morning. Minister of Education, Stephen Lecce claims the government had no choice but to proceed with its legislation to avert a strike and keep students in classrooms after the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted learning for the past few years. However, it should be noted that Educational Assistants, Early Childhood Educators and other educational support workers
worked in-person with special needs students in the schools throughout the pandemic, while others worked remotely. Local school boards are affected differently by the protest since different groups of employees are represented by CUPE. Schools remained open Friday for the Greater Essex County District School Board as well as the French Public Board, Conseil Scolaire Viamomde, whereas they were closed to in-person learning with classes pivoting online for the Windsor Essex Catholic District School Board, the Lambton Kent District School Board, and the Providence Catholic School Board. UPDATE: On Monday, Ontario Premier Doug Ford held a news conference and then offered to repeal Bill 28, which is the law that bans them from striking. CUPE then followed up with a news conference of their own, offering to end protests beginning Tuesday and returning to the bargaining table.
