Months Of Organizing Pays Off as CUPE 2189 Members at YWCA Toronto Ratify Landmark New Deal

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Over the course of months, a small cadre of dedicated labour activists turned a large but largely untested group of workers at the YWCA Toronto into a union prepared to fight for fair pay.

It took hundreds of in-depth and often emotional conversations, union education, and strike training. The result was weekly informational pickets at rotating locations, record setting membership participation, and the ultimate prize: a new contract that workers are proud of.

Last week, members of CUPE 2189 voted to ratify their new collective agreement. These roughly 250 members work at the YWCA Toronto as child care workers, housing support staff, settlement workers, violence against women counsellors and in other critical roles supporting the most vulnerable women and gender diverse people in the city. They entered this round of bargaining in desperate need for a fair raise in the shadow of Bill 124 but YWCA Toronto’s first offer would have done little to help workers catch up.

“Workers are going to food banks, missing rent payments, struggling just to get by. This was a make-or-break negotiation for us and I am so incredibly proud of the effort and care our members put into organizing and mobilizing for what is fair,” said Amanda Kinna, a business administrator with the YWCA Toronto and president of CUPE 2189. “Nearly every person who works at the YWCA Toronto has a second or third job. We have families. We have the daily stress of trying to survive at the poverty line in this city. Despite that, we showed what is possible when workers build their power.”

The contract includes a flat rate raise amounting to an average increase of 11 per cent over three years, money which will go a long way to helping the 70 percent of CUPE 2189 members who struggle to pay their monthly bills. The deal also ends the practice of double on-call at the Woodlawn location, provides an additional day of union work for the president so they can continue to strengthen the local, and includes a one-time signing bonus on top of the annual grid increases.

“The effort that went into getting these workers educated, informed, and prepared to fight is a much-needed reminder that all workers can fight for what they deserve. Regardless of the size of the local, when workers organize and fight together, we win together,” said Fred Hahn, president of CUPE Ontario. “Frontline community workers are among the lowest paid in the province and this win is going to serve as a north star, motivating other workers to fight for fair wages while giving negotiators support to ask for more at the table.”

Widespread community support was key to this securing this deal, with hundreds of community members attending rallies and over one thousand community members sending messages to the YWCA Toronto Board of Directors.

“We are a group of mostly women supporting some of the most marginalized women and gender diverse people in the city. We’ve felt ignored for so long. To suddenly be seen, embraced, and supported by the community was deeply meaningful,” said Kinna. “We’re proud to work at the YWCA Toronto. We’re going to keep doing our jobs, keep supporting the people who need us, and keep building our power.”

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