Edmonton school support workers send letter to parents about contract talks

EDMONTON, AB — (COMMUNITYWIRE) — The Canadian Union of Public Employees, Local 3550 (CUPE 3550) is sending an open letter to parents of students at the Edmonton Public School Board.

The letter reads as follows:

Dear parents, guardians and students,

We are writing to you as the support staff at Edmonton Public School Board (EPSB). We feel you deserve to hear from us directly as to our plans regarding the bargaining we are currently in.

Support workers at EPSB and across Alberta have effectively not had a wage increase in ten years. Over that period, inflation in our province has gone up by about 30%.

The average support worker in Alberta earns about $34,500 – not enough to live on. In fact, many of our members work second and even third jobs to maintain their homes and support their families.

The current offer from the school district is in line with the guidelines imposed by the Alberta government. But we simply can’t accept a deal that doesn’t provide a living wage.

We believe strongly in the work we do, and in the students we support. However, education is being compromised as recruitment and retention of workers suffer due to poor wages. Students are not getting the support they need in the classroom because of the shortfall of staff. EPSB can’t hire and retain staff because of these low wages.

At this point, we don’t know if we will take job action (or when) but we feel we must warn you that it is a strong possibility.

We have always enjoyed strong support from parents and the broader education community. We hope you understand our position. We will do everything we can to keep you informed of our positions and future actions.

Sincerely,

Mandy Lamoureaux,

On behalf of CUPE Local 3550 members

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For more information, contact:

Mandy Lamoureaux
President CUPE 3550
(587) 918-4212