SAANICH — CUPE Local 441 and School District 63 have reached a tentative agreement. Members will be holding a ratification meeting on Sunday to vote on the agreement signed by both parties Saturday morning. In a show of good faith, picket lines will come down and schools will be open on Monday.

“This strike has been difficult and we are pleased to have an agreement that the bargaining committee is recommending to our membership for acceptance,” said CUPE 441 President Dean Coates. “I’d like to thank our members, parents, teachers and the community for their support throughout, and the District for their commitment to Saanich schools and students.”

CUPE 441 will not be commenting on any details of the tentative agreement until after the ratification vote is completed.

CUPE 441 members provide a wide variety of services that support students. Members include Education Assistants, Technical Support staff, Library Techs, Youth and Family Counsellors, Clerical, Custodial, Grounds, Maintenance, Transportation, Trades and District support staff. The local represents almost 500 K-12 support staff workers in SD63 (Saanich).

CUPE 441 took job action on October 28 and have been on strike for three weeks.

SAANICH – CUPE 441 is calling on the District to return to the bargaining table.

“I am disappointed that we did not hear back from the District after our offer to get back to the table on Thursday,” said CUPE 441 President Dean Coates. “Our bargaining team was available, ready, and able to bargain all weekend, but the District did not respond.”

The CUPE 441 bargaining committee has developed a document highlighting their concerns with the employer’s offer that is available online at 441.cupe.ca.

“Our members want to get back to classes to support our students,” said Coates. “The whole community understands the importance of wage parity and we need the employer to find a way to make this work. We need to end this strike and get students back in class.”

CUPE 441 members have been on strike since October 28. The outstanding issue remains as wage parity. Picket lines will remain up at all schools.

CUPE 441 members provide a wide variety of services that support students. Members include Education Assistants, Technical Support staff, Library Techs, Youth and Family Counsellors, Clerical, Custodial, Grounds, Maintenance, Transportation, Trades and District support staff. The local represents almost 500 K-12 support staff workers in SD63 (Saanich).

SAANICH — CUPE Local 441 members are being joined on the picket line this morning by parents and their children. The community group “Families Rally to Support CUPE 441” have organized the event on Facebook. They will be holding a rally and walking the picket lines with CUPE members this morning from 9 to 11 am at Brentwood Bay School and at Sidney Elementary this afternoon from 12:15 to 2:45 pm.

The group has hosted a petition on change.org that has garnered almost 1,300 signatures.

“Parents are standing with us because they want their children to get the education they deserve,” said Coates. “Until we address wage parity, our district will continue to lose people and be a training ground for EAs who then move to neighbouring districts, leaving Saanich understaffed.”

Coates has asked the employer to return to the table and address low wages for all members in the local.

Members of CUPE 441 reviewed highlights of the agreement at a membership meeting on Wednesday and gave clear direction to the bargaining committee that they wanted to continue job action until full wage parity is achieved.

CUPE 441 members provide a wide variety of services that support students. Members include Education Assistants, Technical Support staff, Library Techs, Youth and Family Counsellors, Clerical, Custodial, Grounds, Maintenance, Transportation, Trades and District support staff. The local represents almost 500 K-12 support staff workers in SD63 (Saanich).

CUPE 441 took job action on October 28 over the issue of wage disparity. Today marks the tenth day of their strike.

CHILLIWACK — CUPE 411, K-12 support workers, reached a tentative agreement with School District 33 on November 6. The parties had 18 bargaining sessions as well as two sessions with Mediator Grant McArthur since bargaining began in April.

“We are pleased that mediation helped us reach an agreement, so we are able to meet the Provincial Framework Agreement deadline,” said First Vice President Tracey O’Hara.

O’Hara noted that bargaining was challenging and frustrating at times and the committee worked hard on behalf of CUPE 411 members to get the best deal possible for their members.

“Restrictions and limitations in this bargaining process created a significant barrier in our bargaining team’s ability to make any substantial gains for our members. We would not have gotten there without mediation,” said O’Hara.

The Provincial Framework Agreement (PFA) approved by the K-12 Presidents Council in September forms part of the tentative agreement. The current K-12 agreement expired on June 30, 2019. When ratified by CUPE locals and school districts, the provincial agreement will be in effect from July 1, 2019 to June 30, 2022. This agreement brings the number of CUPE locals who have reached agreements to 55, with two locals remaining.

Further details of the tentative agreement will not be available until after ratification by all parties. Ratification will be completed by the end of November.

CUPE Local 411 members provide a wide variety of services that support students, in five divisions that include Transportation, Clerical, Custodial, Maintenance, and a wide variety of positions that fall into the Assistance division.

The local represents more than 850 K-12 support workers in School District 33.

SAANICH – Bargaining broke off late last night after three days of the latest round of negotiations between CUPE 441 and School District 63.

“I am disappointed that we did not reach an agreement that the bargaining committee felt they could recommend to members,” said CUPE 441 President Dean Coates. “Our efforts to be creative and move toward the employer’s position were not reciprocated and the employer would not add any additional funding.”

The local will not be discussing details of the agreement until they have provided information about the package to their members and gotten their direction at a closed CUPE 441 meeting today.

CUPE 441 members have been on strike since October 28. The outstanding issue remains as wage parity. Picket lines will remain up at all schools.

CUPE 441 members provide a wide variety of services that support students. Members include Education Assistants, Technical Support staff, Library Techs, Youth and Family Counsellors, Clerical, Custodial, Grounds, Maintenance, Transportation, Trades and District support staff. The local represents almost 500 K-12 support staff workers in SD63 (Saanich).