COVID-19

WELCOME BACK!

I hope everyone had a good week and that orientations went smoothly. If issues come up around safety or a concern with the district’s safety plan, contact your site health and safety committee representative. Site committees can bring issues to the district joint health and safety committee for further action. Please continue to visit bcschools.cupe.ca as we will update information as it changes.

In solidarity and safety, 

Warren Williams
K-12 Presidents Council President

 

BUS DRIVER
Site safety committee members are the eyes and ears of safety for their specific site. Get to know who your CUPE site contact is. They know their workplace and gather information to provide to their local’s joint health and safety committee. Site safety committee members are crucial during the pandemic to give feedback if the district safety plan and site safety plans need to be modified as we move through the fall and winter. If they see anything unsafe at work, they need to bring it to their local’s joint health and safety committee.

Sherri Kreklau
CUPE 716 (Richmond)

HORTICULTURIST/GROUPS
It’s harder to work because we have to socially distance. We constantly sanitize our hands and equipment. Safety protocols are definitely more involved. Things have changed, and we’re really careful. We do our utmost to keep everyone safe.

Our work is even more important now, because the outdoors is being utilized more at schools — especially the fields. The fields are considered an outdoor classroom, a place where students play, learn, and exercise. It takes a lot of work to keep these grounds safe and functioning properly. Playing fields, particularly the sport fields, require a great deal of horticultural work to ensure that students can be out there on living grass instead of mud. We’re proud of our work and happy to see this.

Richard Prevost
CUPE 606 (Nanaimo/Ladysmith)

CLERICAL
I started back a couple of weeks ago.  The school was clean, and we’re all aware of our roles. We modelled our re-opening on the district health and safety plan. We’re a little different than elementary schools, but I think we have a pretty good plan in place. The kids are resilient and will pick it up. I know that the staff has.

Things seem to be going smoothly. I enjoy my work and having the kids back. I deal with student records and assist with the scheduling. We have lots of new staff, and learning and teaching new things keeps me coming back.

Becky Rousseau
CUPE 440 (Golden)

IT
We’re pretty much always helping someone. The work itself might not be super glamourous, but I always feel appreciated. We had been investing in online tools for the last couple of years and had Microsoft Teams rolling before the pandemic. We had to step up training and support.

With schools being open, there’s less training but there’s always computers to fix. In our district, each IT worker supports five or six schools – we provide consistency. If the teacher has a lesson plan that involves the computer, it will actually work. They can rely on the technology when they plan an online lesson or a virtual field trip.

Kyle Clark
CUPE 523 (Okanagan/Shuswap)

EDUCATION ASSISTANT
We were so happy to open the school to our kids and the kids were happy. Children are actually very intelligent. Once they are shown and taught how things have changed for them, for their safety, they’re very good about it.

We did a lot of things to remind them of what social distancing looks like. Yesterday we showed all of our kids how to properly wash their hands, so it becomes a healthy habit. The kids get it. They know they need to wash their hands, to sanitize, to give people space.

Our school district is working hard to make schools a safe environment.

Patty Astorino
CUPE 3742 (Prince George)

CUSTODIAN
Kids spend most of their day in school so you want to keep it clean so that they enjoy being there. This pandemic has been a nightmare. My biggest worry is that we won’t have enough time to keep the school clean and safe. My kids go to school, too. I want all kids to be safe and I’ll try to do whatever it takes to keep school safe. Today was the first day kids were back—that’s the best thing! They’re learning and doing what they are supposed to do—be kids and go to school to learn. If kids don’t go to school and learn, everything is pointless. They are our future and will build our country. We need to keep schools safe for our kids.

Houman Anasory
CUPE 1851 (Langley)

View PDF.

For more information on the K-12 Restart, please continue to visit bcschools.cupe.ca as information is regularly updated.

In safety and solidarity,

Warren Williams
K-12 Presidents Council President

Health and safety

36. Will staff have access to masks and face shields?

BCCDC School FAQ

The following FAQs are under the Schools section on the BC Centre for Disease Control website. This information was updated on September 4. Find answers to questions here.

Is it safe to be with older people, like grandparents or Elders, once schools are back in session?

Each family is different. Some families may live with older people or Elders. Other families may visit or depend on them to help with childcare. Families need to think about their own unique situation to decide if and how to be with older people, like grandparents and Elders, in the safest way possible.

If you live with or spend a lot of time with older people or Elders, there are things you can do to lower the chances of getting and spreading the virus. This may include decreasing the number of contacts your family has outside of your household. For example, you can limit contacts to only family members outside of school, work and other commitments. You can also visit outside when the weather is good and keep a 2 metre distance when visiting.

Adults and children are more likely to catch COVID-19 in the community than in schools, based on the rigorous health and safety measures that will be in place.

Can students and staff without symptoms go to school if someone else in their household is sick?

Students and staff without symptoms can still go to school even if someone else in their household is sick. They cannot go to school if public health has told them not to. This is the same as for other settings like workplaces and public spaces.

Most people who are sick or have symptoms of illness in B.C. are not sick with COVID-19. So, it is very unlikely the person in their household has COVID-19.

If someone has been diagnosed with COVID-19, public health will identify close contacts and ask them to stay home and self-isolate.

The person who is sick or has symptoms should be assessed by 8-1-1 or a health care provider. Testing is recommended for anyone with cold, influenza or COVID-19-like symptoms, even mild ones.

What should happen if staff or students become sick while at school?

A student will be separated, provided a non-medical mask or tissues to cover their coughs or sneezes, and cared for if they become sick at school. Their parents or caregiver will be notified and asked to pick them up as soon as possible.

Staff will be separated and asked to go home as soon as possible.

In both cases, the spaces they were in will be cleaned and disinfected.

 

View PDF.

 

View message from CUPE BC President, Paul Faoro

Education Minister Rob Fleming’s funding announcement on Thursday is good news for our members and for a safe restart in B.C. schools.

If you missed the announcement, you can watch it on the B.C. government YouTube channel here. The announcement starts at minute 6:00.

The federal funding of $242.4 million builds on provincial funding of $45.6 million to support a safe restart for B.C.’s schools. Funding will allow schools to expand health and safety measures, purchase more personal protective equipment (PPE) and increase capacity for remote learning.

The Ministry release says that the funding will support school districts to hire and train more teachers and support staff for remote learning; purchase additional software licences, electronic course materials and textbooks; purchase computers or tablets; and create Wi-Fi hubs and internet access in remote and Indigenous communities.

The release highlights some areas where funding can be spent including learning resources and supports, health and safety, transportation, as well as before and after school care. Answering a question, Minister Fleming said that flexibility of funding allowed for hiring additional support staff, including custodians and attendants on buses.

Districts will determine where funds are allocated. This chart shows the amount of federal funding allocated to each district in the last column of Table A: SUMMARY OF GRANTS TO DATE 2020/2021.

Have a safe and happy Labour Day!

In solidarity and safety,

Warren Williams
K-12 Presidents Council President

View PDF.

CUPE K-12 site health and safety committees do not fall under the jurisdiction of WorkSafeBC. The Workers Compensation Board and the Workers Compensation Act only recognize the joint health and safety committee, not the central /district joint safety committee or CUPE site/local health and safety committees. CUPE K-12 site health and safety committees identify problems and bring them to their local’s joint health and safety committee to address.

1. What does a site health and safety committee do?

Site safety committee members are the eyes and ears of safety for their specific site. Get to know who your CUPE site contact is. They know their workplace and gather information to provide to their local’s joint health and safety committee. Site safety committee members are crucial during the pandemic to give feedback if the district safety plan and site safety plans need to be modified as we move through the fall and winter. If they see anything unsafe at work, they need to bring it to their local’s joint health and safety committee.

2. How does the site committee know what safety guidelines are in place?

Site committee members need to be familiar with the Provincial COVID-19 Health & Safety Guidelines for K-12 Settings as well as the district safety plan and any site-specific guidelines in place at their schools. All district safety plans have been approved and are on the district’s individual website. The provincial guidelines document is regularly updated and can be found here.

3. What are the responsibilities of committee members?

Site committee members note issues that are unsafe. They are sometimes a point of contact for members working at the site who notice safety issues that need to be addressed. Get to know who your Committee members should refer to the Provincial COVID-19 Health & Safety Guidelines for K-12 Settings and safety plan for their district, especially during the pandemic. They sometimes also assist their local joint health and safety committee and the employer with member safety.

4. How does a site health and safety committee work with the district?

CUPE K-12 site health and safety committees report concerns or issues in the school directly to the local’s joint health and safety committee. The joint committee then raises it with the district. The local’s joint health and safety committee, in consultation with the local, may ask the site committee to assist in other ways.

5. My school doesn’t have a site health and safety committee. How do we get one?

Contact your local immediately, as these committees are crucial as our members return to work at schools.

6. Is the site health and safety committee a joint committee that includes the union and management?

Typically, site committees include one or more representatives from each union or association and the site administrator.

7. What should our site safety committee do when we see safety guidelines aren’t being followed?

It is important to remember that the site committee is in addition to the required local joint health and safety committee. The site committee should refer their issues and concerns to the local’s joint health and safety committee which deals with issues arising throughout the district. The joint health and safety committee should try to resolve the issues and concerns, including by making formal and informal recommendations as part of the committee’s mandate. Where this is not successful, the joint health and safety committee may contact WorkSafeBC for assistance. In addition, workers always have the right to refuse unsafe work under Section 3.12 of the OHS Regulations.

Please check out the WorkSafeBC guidelines for schools returning to operation.