Province halts potential Edmonton public school support workers' strike as union slams 'delay tactic'

The Canadian Union of Public Employees Local 3550 and CUPE Alberta say it is disappointing that the Alberta government will step into labour negotiations with the Edmonton Public Schools and halt a potential strike involving school support staff. 

The province announced Tuesday afternoon that it has appointed a disputes inquiry board in a bid to get the school board and union to reach a collective agreement. The move was requested by Edmonton Public Schools. 

Educational assistants, library technicians and administrative assistants are among the 3,200 support workers who could have gone on strike as soon as Thursday.

"Incredibly disappointed," said CUPE Alberta president Rory Gill in an interview with CBC on the move by the province. 

"They are forcing employers to continue to come to the table with wages that are simply unacceptable."

Because the disputes inquiry board was established before strike or lockout action began, the union cannot strike and employers cannot lock out employees until the inquiry process ends, which can last up to 30 days. 

"Alberta's government is providing another mediator to the parties in this dispute so that there is a full opportunity for the parties to reach a negotiated settlement before a work disruption occurs," said Matt Jones, minister of jobs, economy and trade, in a news release. 

The union asserts an inquiry is not a neutral third party with authority to prescribe a fair deal.

"As long as the Alberta government continues to impose a low wage mandate on the school board, this delay tactic will not be helpful in reaching a deal," said a Tuesday news release. 

CUPE local 3550 president Mandy Lamoureux previously told CBC that wages have risen by about a dollar an hour in the last 12 years, during which time Alberta's consumer price index — a measure of the cost of living — rose 34 per cent.

Educational assistants, who work 35 hours a week, 10 months a year, earn an average of $27,000 a year, she said.

Members are not only working multiple jobs, they're visiting food banks and struggling to pay their bills, Gill said.

Gill said what has unfolded with labour disputes between the bargaining committee representing educational support staff at Fort McMurray's Catholic and public schools have been concerning. 

A disputes inquiry board was established after some staff were set to strike on Sept. 17.