Posts published in February 2026

Members of the CUPE Saskatchewan Education Workers’ Steering Committee (EWSC) gathered outside Minister of Labour Relations and Workplace Safety Ken Cheveldayoff’s office today to deliver hundreds of valentines urging the provincial government to make meaningful investments in public education in the 2026 provincial budget.

“For more than a decade, underfunding has pushed Saskatchewan’s education system into crisis,” said Kent Peterson, president of CUPE Saskatchewan. “Chronic underfunding means fewer staff, fewer resources, and impossible workloads.”

Karla Sastaunik, chair of the EWSC, emphasized that today’s action – delivering valentines to the Minister – symbolizes the care and commitment education support workers bring to their jobs every day, even as they face worsening conditions.

“Education support workers are central to inclusive education. We are the people who help students succeed every day. Yet our roles are being steadily undermined by years of neglect and underinvestment,” said Sastaunik. “It’s time for this government to prioritize our children, our schools, and the education workers who support students in every part of school life. This means real investment, real staffing, and real respect for the work that we do.”

The Saskatchewan Federation of Labour also attended to show solidarity with education workers across the province.

“We are calling for significant investment in education in the 2026 provincial budget – investment that ensures education workers have the staffing levels, resources, and fair wages they need to do their jobs and support students properly,” said Lori Johb, president of the Saskatchewan Federation of Labour. “Education workers deserve respect, fairness, and real action now.”

CUPE Ontario is condemning the Ford Conservatives after the Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing sent a letter to more than 200 strong mayors, directing them not to use their legislated powers to limit or challenge police budget estimates.

A letter, first reported by Sarnia Journal, suggests mayors cannot use their authority to disagree with spending estimates submitted by police service boards.

“This is a stunning overreach,” said Fred Hahn, president of CUPE Ontario. “If the premier believes policing is so essential that mayors cannot question budget estimates, then the same principle must apply to paramedics, long-term care, child care, shelters, social services, housing supports, and of course our municipal workers, who operate and maintain our vital water infrastructure, roads, and garbage collection. You cannot shield one service from scrutiny while forcing every other service to fight for scraps.”

Hahn said municipal workers see every year how, even though crime statistics continue to fall across the province, policing consumes a growing share of municipal budgets, crowding out investments in housing, transit, community supports and emergency services.

“If strong mayors are barred from questioning police estimates, are they also barred from questioning community centre deficits or shelter shortfalls?” Hahn asked. “Communities know those services are every bit as important. This isn’t about public safety; it’s about centralized political control; a frightening trend we see in our neighbours to the South.”

Krista Laing, chair of CUPE Ontario’s Municipal Workers Committee, said the directive undermines local democracy and worsens instability in municipal finances.

“These types of heavy-handed directives create a hunger games atmosphere at the local level,” Laing said. “Councils are forced to choose between core services because the province refuses to provide stable, adequate funding. You shouldn’t protect one line item by starving the rest.”

CUPE Ontario said public safety requires investments across the full spectrum of services municipalities deliver.

“Communities rely on emergency medical services, long-term care, child care, shelters, community and recreation programs and social supports just as much as policing,” Laing said. “If the province is serious about safety, it must fund all essential services properly, not elevate one above the rest.”

CUPE Ontario is calling on the Ford Conservatives to withdraw its directive and respect the authority of democratically elected municipal leaders.

Representing more than 120 members, the Syndicat des cols bleus de la Ville de Châteauguay (CUPE 1299) is launching a campaign on the ABCs of Châteauguay city management, as part of collective agreement bargaining. The campaign informs citizens that the employer is demanding a blank cheque for contracting out work and wants to completely eliminate minimum employee levels for outside workers, but doesn’t have any comparative studies demonstrating real savings for taxpayers.

It also shows how contracting out often costs more, reduces control over service quality and weakens local employment. Despite the union’s repeated requests, the city is refusing to provide numbers and explain its strategic orientations.

“Responsible bargaining is all about quantifying and justifying demands,” said Stéphane Paré, CUPE representative. “People have a right to know how much contracting out really costs. As long as it refuses to share its numbers, the city will be asking taxpayers to write a blank check.”

This initiative is a reminder that true flexibility comes from maintaining full teams and keeping expertise in-house and equipment on hand, not from increasing reliance on the private sector. It also highlights real-life cases of the high costs and unsatisfactory results of contracting out.

For full details, go to: scfp.qc.ca/chateauguay-amateurs

State of bargaining

The last day of mediation with the Ministère du travail was February 2, 2026. At that meeting, the union reiterated its willingness to continue bargaining under mediation. However, the employer refused to pursue talks for any of the demands or to allow the mediator to continue, with the aim of obtaining a settlement beyond the 120-day period provided for by law.

On November 19, the union called off a week-long strike in order to maintain service and give mediation a chance. In response to this impasse, the union will meet with its members to reconsider a strike in the coming weeks.

CUPE, which represents more than 1,330 employees at the Société québécoise des infrastructures (SQI), strongly denounces the SQI’s handling of work environment issues.

In 2025, the union repeatedly reported the toxic work environment to the agreements and contractual compliance division (DGCCC) at the SQI. The situation had already led to high staff turnover and numerous work stoppages. Though many problematic issues were exposed, several complaints targeted a specific member of executive management.

A firm was hired in fall 2025 to assess the work environment, with findings pointing to a problem among executive managers. But much to CUPE’s surprise, the alleged wrongdoer was appointed to implement the action plan and its recommendations. CUPE believes this decision makes no sense, discredits the process and looks like a cover-up of the real problem.

Several grievances filed by the two CUPE locals concern psychological harassment by various SQI vice-presidents’ offices. On January 12, the newspaper Le Journal de Québec reported that dysfunction at the SQI had already cost taxpayers $132,000.

“It shows a blatant lack of respect for the employees who filed the grievances,” said Mario Laroche, president of CUPE 5522, which represents 760 professional members. “Mandating someone neutral to oversee the process should be a given in this situation; otherwise, it’s hard to see how the alleged victims will be able to resolve their conflicts with the alleged aggressor. It’s time for the SQI to fulfill its obligations: it must put an end to all forms of harassment. They have not fooled us, and we won’t accept attempts at camouflage.”

Sylvain Beaulieu, the president of CUPE 2929, representing 570 office and technical employees and outside workers, added that “top management sets the tone of organizational culture. Managers play a key role: they are expected to follow the rules, admit mistakes, act consistently and treat employees with dignity. When they don’t, inappropriate behaviours recur, get entrenched and then turn the work environment toxic.”

CUPE 7575 is condemning recent statements from Thames Valley District School Board (TVDSB) administration suggesting further cuts may be coming as the board faces a growing special education deficit. 

According to a London Free Press report, Education Director Bill Tucker warned that “every department will be under scrutiny” as TVDSB projects a $2.5 million special education shortfall for 2025–26, contributing to an overall deficit of $5.6 million. The board’s supervisor of financial services, Dave Munroe, attributed part of the deficit to “higher absenteeism” among educational assistants (EAs). 

CUPE 7575 represents over 2,100 educational assistants and student supervisors throughout the TVDSB.  

“Educational Assistants are not the cause of this deficit — they are the victims of a system in crisis,” said Rebecca Avey, President of CUPE 7575. “To suggest that EAs taking necessary sick leave is responsible for financial mismanagement is offensive and completely ignores the realities in our schools.” 

CUPE 7575 represents educational assistants and student supervisors who are on the front lines of increasingly violent, understaffed, and under-resourced classrooms. “Violence in schools is at an all-time high,” Avey said. “When an EA is injured or traumatized at work, that is not absenteeism — it is a workplace injury caused by a lack of supports and staffing.” 

Despite declining enrolment, the needs of students have become more complex, increasing the strain on front-line staff. Absenteeism is a symptom of burnout, understaffing, and unsafe working conditions, not a lack of commitment from staff.  

CUPE 7575 also raises concerns about executive compensation, “While the board puts ‘every department under scrutiny’ and warns of more cuts, we see high-level supervisors being paid salaries as high as $350,000 a year. It’s unacceptable to target some of the lowest-paid workers,” said Avey. 

CUPE 7575 is calling on TVDSB to stop scapegoating educational assistants, invest in school safety and student supports, and prioritize front-line staffing. 

“Our members show up every day for the most vulnerable students,” Avey said. “They deserve more support — not blame.”