29 September 2015
Dear Parents/Guardians,
We wanted to provide you with an update about job action being taken by theCanadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), which represents school support staff.
Currently, the union is in ongoing labour negotiations with the Government of Ontario and public school boards. As a result,members of CUPE are taking part in a legal job action that will impact our schools.
It’s important to note that schools remain open and instructional programs continue to run. During these extraordinary times inour schools, principals and vice–principals are working together with staff to maintain a caring and positive school environment.As always, student safety and learning remain the top priorities of all TDSB staff, and superintendents are in daily contact with our schools to assess any concerns.
Today, CUPE (e.g. custodians, school office staff,educational assistants) has started a partial withdrawal of services which includes:
- Not sweeping entrances and hallways
- Not doing school compost programs
- Not cutting grass or cleaning up leaves unless there is a safety concern
- Not collecting or accepting money for school–related initiatives and fundraising
A full list of CUPE’s directives to its members is available at www.tdsb.on.ca/labour.
As the withdrawal of services continues, it MAY have a more significant impact on school activities and permits.
As you can imagine, principals and vice–principals have had to take on additional tasks as a result of the ongoing job action and we appreciate your patience. During this time, there may be some delays when trying to contact your school office. While we appreciate offers of assistance from parents, volunteers cannot fulfill the duties of staff during a legal job action.
For all the latest labour information, visit tdsb.on.ca/labour.
We remain hopeful that a fair agreement can be reached between unions, the Government of Ontario and public school boards in the very near future.
Robin Pilkey, Chair
Donna Quan, Director of Education