Call to Action
On Friday evening there was an emergency meeting of all CUPE presidents in Ontario with Ontario and National Executives. There were over a hundred Local Presidents at the meeting, and we heard about the fight the Ford government has brought to our comrades at OSBCU, the CUPE local that represents 55000 Ontario Education Workers which includes Educational Assistants, Janitors, Librarians and school administrators.
Learn more about their fight HERE
The bigger issue here is Bill 28, the Ford governments never before seen pre-emptive back-to-work legislation accompanied by the absolute draconian measure of using the “notwithstanding” clause to circumvent workers rights as defined by the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. If this is allowed to happen it will open a door for this to be normalized. If you don’t think the same thing would be used on us if we were ever in a position to strike you are sadly mistaken. The right to strike is our key tool in our bargaining arsenal. As workers we don’t have much else as leverage in the bargaining process.
Lear more about Bill 28 HERE
During the meeting it was discussed what other locals and unions are doing. Other locals within CUPE are walking off the job. Other unions within the Education field are also walking off the job. This is not expected of us but was assured that if we did, we would have full access to the CUPE strike fund. I feel confident when I say not many would support walking off the job, but if I’m wrong, I’d love to hear from you. Sign up to stay up to date on this very fluid and volatile situation HERE
So, what can we do?
Contact Greg Rickford: Greg Rickford represents many if not most of us in this riding. He needs to hear how displeased you are with the actions of this government. We need to put sustained pressure on the MLA’s. You can follow the link below to find an auto dialer that automatically finds your MP and dials their number for you.
Join a Picket Line: This is an easy way to show solidarity and show the government that this fight is with all of us. Imagine if it was you out of work trying to fight for a living wage and how you would feel getting the support from other locals and other unions. Follow the link to find a picket line.
Contact Doug Ford: Tell the premier to lay off our right to strike, our right to collective bargaining and rights of all workers in the province. Follow the Link below to send Doug Ford a message telling him to stop being a bully.
Donate to the cause: Along with he forced contract comes penalties of $4000 per day for every day the members are off the job plus a $250,000 penalty to CUPE. This is potentially costing CUPE $220 million a day. To impose fines on people who already have trouble paying their bills, people who work multiple jobs just to make ends meet is heartless. Every little bit helps.
Together we can do this!