Ontario education support workers vote to accept new deal
CTV
Ontario education support workers have voted to accept a new deal with the provincial government, putting an end to a long and contentious negotiation process.
Ontario education support workers have voted to accept a new deal with the provincial government, putting an end to a long and contentious negotiation process.
The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents about 55,000 workers, announced the ratification of the contract on Monday morning.
According to the bargaining committee, about 73 per cent of members voted to accept the tentative agreement.
“For the first time in a decade, education workers have achieved a collective agreement that did not impose terms through legislation,” the union said in a statement.
The union said they had “unprecedented member engagement,” with about 76 per cent of its members participating in the ratification vote.
Under the new agreement, all workers would receive a $1 flat rate hourly wage increase, or about 3.59 per cent annually. The government has said this would result in a “significant pay increase” for the union’s lowest paid members.
The bargaining committee also secured repayment for the two days workers participated in a political protest due to Bill 28—legislation that mandated a lesser contract onto workers and made it illegal for them to strike.
