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No deal, and in some cases no classes.
Education workers represented by the Canadian Union of Public Employees are walking off the job today (Friday) in defiance of a controversial bill intended to keep them in schools.
They will be holding demonstrations in front of MPP offices.
In Dryden, custodians, office staff, school librarians and others will be in front of Greg Rickford’s constituency office.
Pickets will be set-up outside Tim Horton’s in Sioux Lookout, Subway in Ignace and Red Lake and at the Esso Gas Station in Ear Falls.
Schools in the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board remain open but are likely to shutdown next week.
‘CSDC des Aurora Borealis’ schools (Dryden, Kenora, Ignace) aren’t effected and are open.
All other schools are closed including St. John in Red Lake due to the Ontario Public Service Employees Union Solidarity Walk Out with CUPE.
Officials with the Kenora Catholic District School Board say they respect OPSEU staff and greatly value the work the do in their schools but say the closure of all schools within the board is due to student safety.
All school boards are reviewing their options in case of a lengthy strike including pivoting to remote learning but no decisions have been made on what student learning will look like next week.
Ontario’s Education minister is responding to the strike by 55,000 CUPE workers.
Stephen Lecce says immediately after the Keeping Students in Class Act was passed Thursday night, the Ontario government filed a submission to the Labour Relations Board about what he calls
the illegal strike action.
He says nothing matters more right now than getting students back in the classroom, and the government will use every tool available to them.
