The Ministry of Education, in a collaborative process with provincial health officials, WorkSafeBC, CUPE and B.C.’s education partners and rightsholders, announced significant updates to the K-12 Health and Safety Guidelines earlier today. CUPE sits on the Steering Committee where we advocate for safer schools and increased guidance to the K-12 sector.

As many of these changes are welcomed, they are intentionally broad so as to allow for districts to implement them according to their individual operational structures.

We strongly encourage K-12 locals and Health & Safety Committee representatives to take part in the implementation process to ensure these measures are carried out effectively within your specific district.

Save the dates: K-12 Presidents Council meeting

The K-12 Presidents Council and CUPE K-12 coordinators will be holding two meetings next week with K-12 local presidents, unit chairs and your local Joint Health and Safety Committee representatives. We will review the practical application of the guideline changes and CUPE National OH&S representative Tom McKenna will be available to answer questions.

We encourage you to participate in these meetings to provide input as well as have the opportunity to ask questions.

Tuesday, February 9 and Thursday, February 11 at 3 p.m.

We continue to work with the Ministry of Education through the Education Steering Committee and other partner meetings on a weekly basis to discuss and advocate on behalf of K-12 members across B.C. and look to locals to guide this advocacy.

The Ministry of Education will be funding the development of a Rapid Response Team to liaise with Regional Health Authorities. This will assist with the exposure notification process.

We want to commend all K-12 members for their tireless work throughout this pandemic and their continued strength.

Provincial COVID-19 Health and Safety Guidelines for K-12 with changes highlighted are online. Guidelines for regular reviews of health and safety plans will help ensure consistent application across districts. Other revisions include buses, cleaning and
disinfecting, and guidelines for staff only spaces.

Wearing masks

Clarifications on masks include:

• Elementary students’ mask use is based on personal or family/
  caregivers choice
• Bus drivers are required to wear a mask on buses

K-12 staff and middle/secondary students should wear a mask indoors in school except when:

• sitting or standing at their seat or workstation in a
  classroom or learning space
• there is a barrier in place
• eating or drinking

Those wearing masks must still practice physical distancing.

A new Health Check app

You can download the Ministry of Education’s K-12 Health Check app. Mobile apps are available for Apple and Google.

Provincial COVID-19 Health and Safety Guidelines for K-12 with changes highlighted are online.

View PDF.

Today marks the one-year anniversary of Canada’s first COVID-19 case. This is a difficult milestone for us all, but it is also an important moment to recognize the critical work you continue to provide during an extraordinary crisis.

Thank you for the meaningful work you do every day—especially right now. For all British Columbians, this pandemic has highlighted just how much they depend on the services you provide. Our families, friends, the economy and systems all benefit from your dedication and professionalism. The work you do should never be taken for granted.

All members, working in public schools from early years to Grade 12, are under significant stress as we cope with constantly shifting circumstances for our families and communities during this crisis. For more information on mental health resources please check out Bulletin 44.

There is reason for optimism as vaccine rollout plans have been announced. This doesn’t change the fears and pandemic fatigue you continue to face, so if there is anything we can focus on to support you, please let us know.

To assist you further during this difficult period, we want to provide the most accurate and up to date information relevant to your work in the sector. Please visit our website for information about COVID-19, including frequently asked questions and other resources. If you prefer to receive updates via social media, please follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter @cupek12bc.

We wish you continued safety as we all double up efforts to follow guidelines and stay safe with COVID variants now on the scene.

In solidarity,

Jeanne Marr and Chris Losito
K-12 Coordinators – BC Region

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The Province’s immunization plan, announced today,  applies an age-based approach. Phase 1 and Phase 2 focus on protecting those most susceptible to severe illness and death from COVID-19.  Phase 3 and Phase 4 focus on the general population.

Adults older than age 60 have at least 5 times increased odds of hospitalization and mortality, with those over 80 carrying double that risk.

K-12 support staff likely included in Phase 3

CUPE continues to advocate strongly that support staff be included in prioritized groups who are now included in the later stages of Phase 3.

According to a government news release, as additional vaccines become available, frontline essential workers or those who work in specific workplaces may also be able to start receiving vaccines later in Phase 3. British Columbians aged 69–16 who are deemed to be clinically extremely vulnerable, will be eligible for early immunization in Phase 3.

The plan calls for every eligible British Columbian to receive a vaccine between April and the end of September – a total of 7.4 million doses (allowing for 2 doses per person). The timing of each phase may begin sooner than scheduled.

This plan is the largest in B.C.’s history. Health authorities – in partnership with communities, businesses, and municipalities – will set up clinics in 172 B.C. communities.

Vaccine Pre-registration

Members will be able to pre-register for the vaccine with their mobile devices, computers or by phone. Details will be released by the end of February.

The steering committee has been assured that ample vaccine is available and we can expect to have a protected adult population by September 2021. Both the Minister and BCCDC have assured us that we can and should plan for a full return to school in September with a fully-protected adult population.

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Throughout the pandemic, the BCCDC and Provincial Health Officer have reiterated that transmission rates of COVID-19 in schools is low. Two recent research papers – from the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control and the National Collaborating Centre for Methods and Tools at McMaster University — appear to support this position, as does data released by Vancouver Coastal Health for the first half of the 2020/21 school year.

While this news is welcome and can provide some peace of mind, the fear and anxiety of exposure to COVID-19 and bringing the virus home to your families is real and understandable. The best way to keep K-12 members, their families, students, parents and co-workers safe is to:

1. Enforce robust COVID safety plans, including: maintaining physical distancing; wearing a mask if unable to physically distance; frequently washing hands; and staying home if not feeling well.
2. Become active participants in your workplace and/or regional Joint Health and Safety Committee(s),
3. Push for school districts to support effective isolation and quarantine, by providing paid general leave during these periods, and
4. Advocate for improved transparency and timelines of exposure reporting.

The K-12 Presidents Council, CUPE K-12 locals, CUPE National and CUPE BC continue to take these priorities on, and will continue to regularly report out to members as new information becomes available.

Steering Committee works with BCCDC to revise guidelines

The BCCDC will be issuing revised guidance for the K-12 sector over the next couple of weeks. These revisions are not meant to be changes to protocol, but instead are meant to provide specific and additional clarity.

We know that the current safety measures, when used together, keep schools as safe as possible.

Guidance has been intentionally broad to allow each district to specifically apply it. However, we know that this has not been the case in many districts and the lack of detailed guidance creates deficiencies in the safety plans.

The Steering Committee has been working closely with BCCDC to adapt this guidance to be much more specific and address more areas of concern.

View PDF.