BURNABY – The BC Ministry of Education announced today that nominations for the 2020 Premier’s Awards for Excellence in Education are now open.

K-12 Presidents Council President Warren Williams encourages CUPE Locals to nominate their members to recognize the excellent services support staff provide in schools throughout B.C.

“These awards are now more inclusive and provide an opportunity to highlight the dedication and commitment of all CUPE members in K-12,” said Williams, noting that the awards are an opportunity to show how all support staff play an important role in K-12. “It would be great to see nominees representing all the various services our members provide in K-12, and to have members nominated from all regions in the Province.”

A category for Outstanding Support – School Community, added last year, opens the awards to CUPE members who work as bus drivers, crossing guards, student supervisors, aboriginal cultural facilitators, custodians, maintenance/tradespeople, and clerical workers. Education assistants and Aboriginal support workers are eligible in the Outstanding Support – Teaching Assistant category.

Full details on categories and the nomination process are available online, along with nomination forms.

The Premier’s Awards for Excellence in Education celebrates the contributions of support staff, teachers, and administrators who make a difference in B.C. schools and who are “vital to the cultural, economic and social well-being of the province.” Nominations are open from January 13 – April 30, 2020. Finalists will be announced in May and winners will be announced at an award ceremony in Victoria in October.

Meet CUPE 379 member Wendel Williams from École Alpha Secondary School in Burnaby (SD 41), winner in the 2019 Outstanding Support – School Community category and finalists Jodi Guy, CUPE 723 member from École Phoenix Middle School in Campbell River (SD 72) and CUPE 523 member Dorothy Jones from A.L. Fortune Secondary School in North Okanagan-Shuswap (SD 83). 2019 finalists in the Outstanding Support – Teaching Assistants category are CUPE 947 member Elaine Bayles from Glanford Middle School in Victoria (SD 61) and CUPE 3523 member Marie Kielpinski from Mount Boucherie Secondary School in Central Okanagan (SD 23).

VANCOUVER—The K-12 Presidents Council announced today that all locals have now reached agreements with their respective districts and that K-12 province-wide bargaining has been completed for support staff.

K-12 Presidents Council President Warren Williams thanked everyone involved in bargaining at both union and employer tables.

“Thanks to all the bargaining committees for their hard work and dedication, union business agents, and to our national staff – including specialists – for their ongoing support,” said Williams. “I’d also like to thank CUPE National and the CUPE BC Division.”

Williams said that dates have been set for the new committees created through the Provincial Framework Agreement. “We’re looking forward to working together to make improvements for support staff and students.”

The new committees are Support Staff Education, Provincial Labour Management, and Safety in the Workplace. The Job Evaluation Committee, created in the previous provincial agreement, has begun the second phase of its work.

The K-12 Presidents Council is comprised of representatives from 62 locals in school districts across British Columbia, including 57 CUPE locals. Members of the Council represent more than 29,000 education workers who provide a wide variety of services that support students. These include Education Assistants, School Secretaries, Youth and Family Workers, Caretakers, First Nations Support Workers, IT Workers, Career Information Assistants, Strong Start Facilitators, Trades and Maintenance Workers, and Bus Drivers.

KELOWNA — CUPE 3523, K-12 support workers at School District 23 (Central Okanagan), reached a tentative agreement after 20 bargaining sessions that began in May. The tentative agreement was finally reached on November 26 following two days of mediation.

CUPE 3523 President David Tether said that this round of bargaining was a tough slog and a tentative agreement was reached despite the lack of preparation, wasted time, and multiple concessions brought forward by the employer. Contrasting the difficulties over six months of bargaining, Tether praised the Local’s bargaining committee.

“Our bargaining committee was amazing, they worked exceedingly hard,” said Tether. “Despite the employer, we got a reasonable agreement we think our members will be happy with. At the end of the day, we didn’t give up one thing. I am, however, disappointed that our relationship with the employer has been compromised, an unnecessary casualty of this round.”

The tentative agreement also incorporates the provincial framework agreement recommended by the K-12 Presidents Council in September. The current K-12 agreement expired on June 30, 2019. When ratified by CUPE locals and school district Boards of Trustees, the collective agreement will be in effect from July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2022.

Further details of the tentative agreement will not be available until after ratification by all parties. CUPE 3523 is holding a ratification meeting on November 30. With this settlement, all 57 CUPE K-12 locals have completed bargaining.

CUPE 3523 represents K-12 support workers in 31 elementary schools, 7 middle school, 5 secondary schools and one alternative school in the municipalities of Peachland, West Kelowna, Kelowna, Lake Country and the Regional District of Central Okanagan. CUPE 3523 members, who provide a wide variety of services that support students, include Education Assistants, Grounds Workers, Indigenous Support Workers, Bus Drivers, Custodians, Trades, Clerical, Maintenance, Information Technology, Administrative Support, Supervision Assistants, and Strong Start.

NELSON – CUPE K-12 Local 748 reached a tentative agreement with School District 8 (Kootenay Lake) following two days of mediation on November 23.

CUPE 748 President Michelle Bennett characterized bargaining as challenging, noting that in her experience it was one of the hardest rounds ever.

“We could not have gotten to a collective agreement without our bargaining team,” said Bennett. “They were amazing.”

Bennett said that the local was able to deal with existing language on overtime for Education Assistants and Bus Drivers. Further details of the tentative agreement will not be available until after ratification by all parties. Ratification is expected to be completed by November 30.

The tentative agreement also incorporates the provincial framework agreement approved by the K-12 Presidents Council in September. The current K-12 agreement expired on June 30, 2019. When ratified by CUPE locals and school district Boards of Trustees, the collective agreement will be in effect from July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2022. CUPE represents 57 K-12 locals and 56 have reached agreements, with one local still at the table.

CUPE 748 represents more than 400 K-12 support workers. They provide a wide variety of services that include Education Assistants, Youth Care Workers, Indigenous Support Workers, Custodians, Trades, Clerical, Maintenance, IT, Administrative Support, and Bus Drivers. Members support students in the communities of Crawford Bay, Creston, Kaslo, Meadow Creek, Nelson, Salmo, Slocan, Winlaw, and Wynndel.