Five groups of education workers vote to join strike

CALGARY, Alberta--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Five more CUPE locals representing over 2,000 education support workers have voted to take job action.

These results are unofficial until validated by the Alberta Labour Relations Board.

The groups include:

Local 40, Calgary Board of Education (800 custodial and maintenance employees), voted 94.5% in favour of job action.

Local 520, Calgary Catholic School District (350 custodial and maintenance employees) voted 94% in favour of job action.

Local 3484, Black Gold School Division (570 EAs and support staff employees) voted 95% in favour of job action.

Local 5040, Foothills School Division (300 EAs and support staff employees) voted 82% in favour of job action.

Local 5543, Parkland School Division (400 EAs and support staff employees) voted 91% in favour of job action.

CUPE will provide school districts and the public with 72 hours notice before engaging in any job action. No such notice is being given at the moment.

CUPE Alberta President Rory Gill said the strong strike mandate from all five groups is another sign that the Alberta government has to improve education funding in next week’s budget. Alberta has the lowest per-student education funding of any province in Canada.

“We’ve been telling the government that if they don’t address the funding problems in our classrooms, the strikes will expand,” said Gill. “They did not address the funding problems, and now the strikes will expand.”

Over 4,000 education support staff have been on strike in Fort McMurray and in the Edmonton region since the beginning of January.

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