{"id":518425,"date":"2022-11-04T22:57:54","date_gmt":"2022-11-04T19:57:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/im-an-education-worker-on-strike-im-not-going-back-until-we-get-a-fair-deal\/"},"modified":"2022-11-04T22:57:54","modified_gmt":"2022-11-04T19:57:54","slug":"im-an-education-worker-on-strike-im-not-going-back-until-we-get-a-fair-deal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/im-an-education-worker-on-strike-im-not-going-back-until-we-get-a-fair-deal\/","title":{"rendered":"#I\u2019m an education worker on strike. I\u2019m not going back until we get a fair deal."},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"ez-toc-container\" class=\"ez-toc-v2_0_85 counter-hierarchy ez-toc-counter ez-toc-custom ez-toc-container-direction\">\n<p class=\"ez-toc-title\" style=\"cursor:inherit\">Table of Contents<\/p>\n<label for=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3bf359c70f9\" class=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-label\"><span class=\"\"><span class=\"eztoc-hide\" style=\"display:none;\">Toggle<\/span><span class=\"ez-toc-icon-toggle-span\"><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"list-377408\" width=\"20px\" height=\"20px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\"><path d=\"M6 6H4v2h2V6zm14 0H8v2h12V6zM4 11h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2zM4 16h2v2H4v-2zm16 0H8v2h12v-2z\" fill=\"currentColor\"><\/path><\/svg><svg style=\"fill: #dd3333;color:#dd3333\" class=\"arrow-unsorted-368013\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"10px\" height=\"10px\" viewBox=\"0 0 24 24\" version=\"1.2\" baseProfile=\"tiny\"><path d=\"M18.2 9.3l-6.2-6.3-6.2 6.3c-.2.2-.3.4-.3.7s.1.5.3.7c.2.2.4.3.7.3h11c.3 0 .5-.1.7-.3.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7zM5.8 14.7l6.2 6.3 6.2-6.3c.2-.2.3-.5.3-.7s-.1-.5-.3-.7c-.2-.2-.4-.3-.7-.3h-11c-.3 0-.5.1-.7.3-.2.2-.3.5-.3.7s.1.5.3.7z\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/span><\/label><input type=\"checkbox\"  id=\"ez-toc-cssicon-toggle-item-6a3bf359c70f9\" checked aria-label=\"Toggle\" \/><nav><ul class='ez-toc-list ez-toc-list-level-1 ' ><li class='ez-toc-page-1 ez-toc-heading-level-1'><a class=\"ez-toc-link ez-toc-heading-1\" href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/im-an-education-worker-on-strike-im-not-going-back-until-we-get-a-fair-deal\/#%E2%80%9CIm_an_education_worker_on_strike_Im_not_going_back_until_we_get_a_fair_deal%E2%80%9D\" >&#8220;I\u2019m an education worker on strike. I\u2019m not going back until we get a fair deal.&#8221;<\/a><\/li><\/ul><\/nav><\/div>\n<h1><span class=\"ez-toc-section\" id=\"%E2%80%9CIm_an_education_worker_on_strike_Im_not_going_back_until_we_get_a_fair_deal%E2%80%9D\"><\/span>&#8220;I\u2019m an education worker on strike. I\u2019m not going back until we get a fair deal.&#8221;<span class=\"ez-toc-section-end\"><\/span><\/h1>\n<div>\n                            \u201cNobody wants our jobs anymore. I have a co-worker who wears Kevlar to work, because they\u2019re afraid of being assaulted. Others go to food banks because they can\u2019t afford to eat.\u201d\n                        <\/div>\n<div>\n                                                                        <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For the past 17 years, I\u2019ve been an educational assistant with the Limestone District School Board in Kingston, Ontario. My job involves providing support for special-needs students, helping with physiotherapy, feeding, toileting, speech, movement, everything. I love my job. I love the students. But I\u2019m now one of thousands of education workers on strike in Ontario, and I won\u2019t be going to work today\u2014or tomorrow, or again until the Ford government chooses to negotiate a fair deal with us.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">To be clear, it\u2019s illegal for me to protest like this. The government just passed Bill 28, the Keeping Students in Class Act, which fixes my wages through 2025 and prohibits job action. I could be fined up to $4,000 for missing work today\u2014but I don\u2019t care. Workers are leaving the education system in droves because they can\u2019t afford to support their families, and I\u2019m fed up, along with my colleagues.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">In August, our union requested a pay increase of $3.25 an hour\u2014with the average CUPE education worker making $39,000 a year, that\u2019s an 11.7 per cent pay raise. That might seem like a big jump, but it follows more than a decade of wages steadily dropping in real terms: we\u2019ve seen 19 per cent inflation in that time, and our salaries have only increased 8.8 per cent, making for a de facto pay cut.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">But instead of negotiating with us after that request, the provincial government fast-tracked Bill 28, unilaterally imposing a new contract. It offers education workers making less than $43,000 a year a 2.5 per cent wage increase annually through 2025. Those earning more get a 1.5 per cent increase, and we can\u2019t negotiate salaries for the foreseeable future.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">For me, that increase is almost meaningless. I only make $34,500 a year, barely more than I made when I was hired full time in 2008. Based on my salary, the proposed wage increase means I\u2019ll get an extra $72 a month. That\u2019s before taxes, benefits and my pension get taken out\u2014it won\u2019t even buy me a full tank of gas.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">My husband, Jarrod, is a correctional officer here in Kingston, and we have three kids 12 and under. Our paycheques aren\u2019t going toward lavish vacations; they\u2019re spent on food, medical expenses and keeping a roof over our head. The little bit we have left over from my husband\u2019s paycheque goes toward an education fund for the kids\u2014but any little unexpected expense means nothing is left over.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">When the power steering lines broke in my minivan, we had to borrow money to pay for the $1,500 repair. Last year, my daughter, Sophia, was diagnosed with dyslexia, and it cost $4,000 just for the assessments. We paid that out of pocket. Her speech-therapy classes are $80 each. All told, we\u2019ve probably spent $25,000 on outside support since her diagnosis. We renewed our mortgage this year, and our monthly payments jumped by $400 due to interest rate increases, making everything that much harder.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Jarrod\u2019s overtime pay helps keep us above water\u2014he figures out how many additional hours he can work each week to bring in more money, but that means he misses a lot of family life. Most days, he leaves for work at 5:30 in the morning and gets home at 11 at night. He often sees the kids for a little bit in the morning, then not again until the next day. These cutbacks don\u2019t just hurt workers, they hurt families, and kids.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">We\u2019ve also had to deny our kids extracurriculars\u2014those little things that many families take for granted. My oldest son, Jeremy, recently developed a love for flag football. I might be biased, but he\u2019s really good at it. My youngest son, Andrew, wanted to join a flag football league. But we can\u2019t afford it. The league costs $275, and then we\u2019d need to buy cleats, a mouthguard, gloves, etc. It\u2019s not like the raises we\u2019re asking for will go into some offshore bank account; they\u2019d go toward speech therapy and flag football. They\u2019d enrich our children\u2019s lives and be funnelled right back into the community. My husband and I have full-time government jobs\u2014we should be able to live decently and provide these things.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It\u2019s not just workers and their families who are suffering, either. When I started, there was a 1:1 ratio between educational assistants and special-needs students. But every year, resources have dwindled and caseloads have increased. Last year I had eight students, and it just wasn\u2019t possible to see all of them. Some days, I went home thinking, <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Oh, I didn\u2019t see so-and-so today, I hope they\u2019re okay.<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> I skipped breaks and found extra time to catch up, but there\u2019s only so much I can do.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Students aren\u2019t getting enough support because nobody wants our jobs anymore. The work is harder, worse-paid and sometimes dangerous. I have a co-worker who wears Kevlar every day in an elementary school because they\u2019re afraid of being assaulted. Others go to the food bank because they can\u2019t afford to eat.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Now that Bill 28 has passed, I see more struggle in the future. Families will have to make tougher choices when it comes to providing for their families. Students will suffer as more educators leave the system, and those who remain are overworked. The Ford government makes it sound like these strikes will negatively impact parents and students. But I\u2019m a parent. I <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">want<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> my children to be in school. In the long term, the best way to improve things for everyone is to show the value we bring as educators. And right now that means skipping class.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em>\u2014 As told to Matthew Silver<\/em><\/p><\/div>\n<p><script async defer crossorigin=\"anonymous\" src=\"https:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/sdk.js\"><\/script><\/p>\n<blockquote><p><strong><span style=\"color: #ff6600;\">If you liked the article, do not forget to share it with your friends. Follow us on\u00a0<span style=\"color: #ff0000;\"><a style=\"color: #ff0000;\" href=\"https:\/\/news.google.com\/publications\/CAAqBwgKMLG0nwswvr63Aw\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Google News<\/a><\/span>\u00a0too, click on the star and choose us from your favorites.<\/span><\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\">For forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">General category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/society\/im-an-ontario-education-worker-illegal-strike-cupe-bill-28\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;I\u2019m an education worker on strike. I\u2019m not going back until we get a fair deal.&#8221; \u201cNobody wants our jobs anymore. I have a co-worker who wears Kevlar to work, because they\u2019re afraid of being assaulted. Others go to food banks because they can\u2019t afford to eat.\u201d For the past 17 years, I\u2019ve been an&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":518426,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.macleans.ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/11\/CP165188618-766x431.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[136439,136440,10574,67863,61325],"class_list":["post-518425","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-bill-28","tag-cupe","tag-education","tag-ontario","tag-strike"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518425","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=518425"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518425\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/518426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=518425"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=518425"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=518425"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}